The Difference
by Amie357
Summary: Alternate universe where one small difference means that Jess and Nick meet right around the beginning of the first episode of season 1 but in different circumstances.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one - The Difference

Nick Miller walked along the usual streets on his usual route to work. He was early for his shift but trying desperately to kill some time. Since Caroline had ripped his heart out and stomped on it, he had too much spare time on his hands. Wherever he went, it reminded him of her. Even sitting at home made him think of her. Even walking along the street to work reminded him of her.

He stopped abruptly, casting his eyes around, desperately looking for something, but he wasn't quite sure what. Every day he would just plod along to work regardless of how he was feeling. Today, something tugged at him. He didn't know what it was but for once, he decided to go with it.

It told him he needed somewhere new. Somewhere he could be a different Nick Miller. His eyes drifted across the street to a little tea room. It couldn't be any less like somewhere he would go. It was cheerful, bright and airy. Hopefully it would rub off on him and make him a bit more cheerful.

It certainly couldn't make him less cheerful, he thought bleakly as he walked inside.

XxxxxxxX

Jessica Day walked to her favourite place in the whole world from her best friend CeCe's apartment. She had been staying with CeCe for the last few days since she had gotten home and found her then-boyfriend Spencer with another woman. Getting out of there and to her best friend's place was a bit of a blur, filled with tears and whirling thoughts.

CeCe had been her pillar of strength, of course, and had let her stay with her without question. She'd told Jess what a dirtbag Spencer was and had managed to rile her up into a rage with the former love of her life. Now she was angry as well as sad.

She wasn't so sure that was a good thing...

She took a deep, calming breath as she turned the corner. She saw the bright sign for Cloud 9 Tea Room. She almost skipped towards the brass handled door, opening it quickly and drinking in her favourite sight. There were little tables of different shapes and sizes strewn haphazardly around, each with a white lace tablecloth and an assortment of squashy, comfortable chairs in every colour imaginable casually put near the tables.

Jess hadn't been to Cloud 9 in quite some time. Spencer didn't like to go anywhere, really. It was a bit of a battle to get him to leave the house, let alone to go anywhere she wanted to go to. She chose one of the smaller tables in the corner with a bright blue chair and flopped down into it.

"Not anymore," she murmured to herself, picking up the menu and feeling her tension disappear as she decided between traditional English cream tea and chocolate dipped strawberries.

"_Today is looking uuuuup," _she sang to herself quietly as the waitress walked over.

XxxxxX

Nick was actually pleasantly surprised at how nice the tea room was. It had a relaxing atmosphere and with the white lace tablecloths and blue plates it kind of did have a Cloud 9 feel to it.

He sat towards the back of the room and ordered a muffin and some tea. Once it arrived, he removed his jacket and relaxed back into the squashy chair. He felt his face relax more than it had in the weeks since Caroline split up with him. He felt the frown lines lessen between his eyebrows and the headache he didn't even know he had started to ebb slightly.

He heard the front door open with a bang and looked up. A small woman with vast quantities of dark curly hair skipped through it, a strange angry smile on her face. He watched her curiously as she looked around, drinking in her surroundings with her huge sparkly blue eyes like she was looking at an old friend.

He tracked her as she walked to the back corner and flopped heavily on to a comfortable looking blue chair. He adjusted his position in his chair so that he could keep looking at this strange woman, only looking away to give a gentle laugh as she talked and _sang_ to herself.

XxxxxxxxxxX

After her third chocolate dipped strawberry, Jess started to feel a bit brighter. She took a sip of her tea and looked at the collection of paintings and trinkets that festooned the walls. She smiled brightly and pushed her glasses up her nose. Her eyes stuck on a picture of a lonely little red boat that was all alone on a beach and tears sprung to her eyes.

She didn't want to cry in public (again) so she dragged her eyes away from the poor boat and started to look around the tea room at the other patrons. Her eyes caught immediately on the one person who stood out as rather out of place in there.

He was scruffy, with dark hair and dark eyes. He looked like he hadn't shaved for a few days and didn't really care about it. He had what looked like a permanent grumpy frown that was slightly endearing. He had a bit of a grumpy Walter Matthau vibe about him.

He looked over and caught her staring. She looked away, blushing, but couldn't resist another look at the scruffily handsome man. He caught her eye as she looked up and gave her a big, toothy smile that made her heart skip a beat. She smiled back.

He got up and walked over to her. She could feel her cheeks growing hot.

"I just wanted to say hey," he said gruffly. "I'm not leaving cos I want to, I've gotta go to work."

"O-ok," she stammered with a shy smile. This was a bit strange, but in quite a good way.

"Could I meet you here next week so I can do this properly? Whatever this is..." He trailed off miserably, his eyes fixed on his shoes.

"I'd like that," she said brightly, feeling her heart go out to him.

His head shot up and his eyes lit up.

"I'm Jess, by the way," she said.

"Nice to meet ya, Jess," he grinned as he bounded out of the door waving at her.

As he reached the pavement outside, he realised he hadn't told her his name. He hoped she would come back next week to find it out.

XxxxxxxX

Nick got home from his shift at the bar that night, walking brightly into his apartment. His two roommates, Schmidt and Coach were sitting on the couch watching something with explosions. They both looked up at Nick and wore identical looks of shock at their roommate's change in demeanour.

"Nicholas," Schmidt said demandingly. "I thought you were working tonight, not having sex."

Nick looked perplexed. "I was working, Schmidt. Why does your mind always go to sex?"

"You pranced in here, looking like a Cheshire Cat," Schmidt said, raising his eyebrow. "It was the only explanation for the sudden dissipation of your misery cloud."

"Misery cloud?" Nick shouted, storming off to his room and slamming the door shut behind him.

"Jar, Schmidt," Coach said with a shake of his head. "No need, dude."

Schmidt stuffed a bill into the jar and huffily cast his eyes back to the explosions on screen.

Nick flopped heavily down on his bed. Schmidt hadn't even dented his great mood and neither had a slightly crummy night at the bar. He used his usual idiocy to get away quickly to get back to his room. His thoughts drifted back to the girl at the tea room. She was weird, but in a bright and wonderful way. She was like a warm ray of sunshine, he thought to himself, smiling a very rare smile.

XxxxxxxX

Jess floated back to CeCe's apartment. She knew it was too soon for something serious, but just knowing that someone as ruggedly handsome as her stranger was interested in seeing her again gave her a wonderful feeling bubbling in her chest. She felt a bit crazy as she didn't even know his name, but that added to part of the excitement.

CeCe looked up from her magazine as Jess walked through the door and saw her smiling.

"Good day, sweetie?" CeCe asked with a grin.

"It was great," Jess said breathily, falling down on the couch next to her best friend. "I went for tea and deep thinking at Cloud 9 and talked to a strangely hot guy."

"Strangely hot?" CeCe asked with a giggle.

"Yeah, he was crinkled, grimy and grumpy," Jess said with a chuckle.

"The opposite of Spencer!" CeCe said, excited to see her friend start to move on.

"And exactly what the doctor ordered," Jess grinned. "He had to go to work so we organised to meet up at the same time next week."

"Ooh, the opposite of Spencer again," CeCe said with mischief dancing in her eyes. "He actually has a job!"

Jess laughed, knowing she should agree with CeCe but not really wanting to think about Spencer at that point in time. She was so happy to see the beginnings of moving on that she didn't want to dwell on the past.

"We should celebrate the start of moving on," Jess declared. "Girls night out tomorrow?"

"Of course, sweetie," CeCe agreed, delighted to see Jess happy again. "I'm going to a friend of a friend's party tomorrow, so we can go there!"

Jess's grin dropped slightly. "All my going out clothes are still at Spencer's. Can I borrow something?"

"Let's go shopping!"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Jess woke up just after the sun had risen and laid on the couch listening to the morning song of the birds for a few minutes. She loved listening to nature in the morning before any pesky people started making noise.

Her mind roved back to the previous day and her encounter with the handsome stranger. She smiled at the memory, looking forward to their next encounter. Perhaps she'd get a new dress to wear for then to make him smile that wonderful smile again.

"Shopping!" Jess whispered excitedly to herself, sitting up and clapping her hands.

It was so nice to have something to look forward to, she mused, after... nothing she's wanting to think about now, thank you very much. She got up, showered quietly (angry models early in the morning are no fun at all) and got dressed. She grabbed some cereal for breakfast and excitedly read the fashion magazines hanging round the place until CeCe got up.

Seeing how keen Jess was to get going on such a bright Saturday morning, CeCe rolled her eyes with a smile and got ready to go out. She knew this was all a part of the healing process for her best friend so she wanted to absorb some of her enthusiasm, despite the unfeasibly early hour.

The two women shopped, laughed, ate, shopped and laughed some more as the day wore on. Jess chose a cute red, strapless pencil dress that hugged her curves for the evening's festivities. It had a Bugsy Malone feel to it that she loved, with its contrasting black detailing across the top and sides.

Jess picked up a few more outfits as she carried on, loving the freedom of not having to sneak it past Spencer. He never liked her buying things from 'Corporate America'. Like clothes just grew on trees. Jess mused that it could be pretty cool if they did. What a money saver. His crummy hemp clothes kinda did grow on trees, she sniggered to herself.

Her absolute favourite, that she had in mind to wear to _tea_ the next week, was a bright electric blue dress with white polka dots. It had a flared skirt and a tall, shiny red belt that she couldn't stop smiling at. She even bought a pair of matching blue pumps that had little red bows on them. Irresistibly cute, she hoped with a smile as she watched the shop assistant put it into a thick brown paper bag.

The word _tea_ echoed round her head, making her stomach flip flop with nervous excitement. She hadn't known a few days before that such an innocent word would make her feel so flushed and full of life.

Jess shook her head to bring herself back to the present and with bags bulging, the pair headed home to get ready to go out.

XxxxxxX

"Nicholaaaaas!" Schmidt screamed from the living room of the loft.

Nick mooched out of his room with a hint of irritation at the screeching coming from his friend.

"Nicholas, I am simply furious with you," Schmidt grumbled with his hands planted self-righteously on his hips.

"Why now?" Nick sighed.

"My raspberry ruffle body soufflé has mysteriously disappeared again," Schmidt said haughtily, tapping his foot. "J'accuse, Nick Miller. J'accuse."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Crap French is a double jar offence, Schmidt."

Schmidt stuffed two bills into the jar, not taking his laser beam stare off Nick for a moment.

"You didn't answer my question, Mister Miller," Schmidt said through his teeth.

"No, Schmidt, I didn't take your goddamned body soufflé. I don't even know what it is. I don't touch the crazy metro sexual shelf in the bathroom because I don't want you giving me crap all the time."

"Well, it didn't use itself, Nick," Schmidt said in a high pitched voice. He was still looking Nick square in the eyes.

Nick squirmed under his gaze. He knew he was innocent, but this staring business was getting a bit weird.

"I didn't touch the damn shelf, Schmidt!" Nick shouted, stalking out of the room, full of irritation.

"No sweat back," Schmidt called after him. "Guess you're off the hook... COACH!"

Nick slammed his door shut behind him. His great mood from yesterday had disappeared after a confusing night full of confusing dreams of women with stacks of dark hair and enormous blue eyes. He awoke feeling a bit nervous and full of worry for his tea date the next week.

"Game face, Miller," he muttered to himself through gritted teeth.

Tonight was the night of his school friend Winston's welcome home party. He'd been playing basketball in Latvia professionally but had decided that the time had come to return home. He was really looking forward to his friend being back so they could hang out and had agreed that he could take the spare room in the loft.

They were all pretty glad that he was taking that room - they'd put an ad on Craigslist and the absolute weirdos that had responded were enough to put you off new people for life.

Coach had been offered a new job that would have taken him out of the loft, but the prospect of Winston coming back had held him where he was. The two of them had planned many years ago to open up their own gym together and they'd been talking casually about restarting that idea again.

Nick let as much irritation flow out of him as possible, which, he thought, probably took him back down to almost human levels. He padded to the bathroom and took a quick shower before hastily towelling off and dashing back to his room to get dressed.

As he left his room, wearing his cleanest black shirt and dark jeans, he nodded a greeting to Coach who was ready also and sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Are you the soufflé thief?" Nick asked with a barely disguised guffaw.

"HELL no," Coach said firmly. "Turns out it was last night's conquest!"

"Hmmm," Nick said with a smile filled with mischief. "Looks like revenge is in order after that performance. Perhaps Winston's... unique... brand of practical jokes is in order."

Coach snorted with laughter. "I missed that dude!"

XxxxxxxX

It was a hot and steamy evening as CeCe and Jess approached the bar that held the party that they were going to. They could hear the repetitive thud of the music from quite some distance away. Jess had a flutter of nerves in her stomach as she did every time she was going to meet a whole bunch of new people.

She was sure CeCe never felt that way as she always held her head high and strutted towards the doors. Jess decided that she would try to do the same and squared her shoulders determinedly.

Jess smiled as she entered, appreciating that someone had decorated the room with banners, balloons and shiny streamers looping across the room. It was done very tastefully, she mused. She looked at the banner and grinned at the bright red lettering, which told her that someone called Winston was being welcomed back.

The music was incredibly loud, pounding through Jess's chest. She indicated to CeCe that she was going to the bar to get drinks and got a nod in response as her friend went straight to the dance floor with a guy who she had greeted a moment before.

That must be the friend of a friend, Jess guessed.

Jess stood at the bar, trying to get the attention of the barman. There were so many tall, beautiful women vying for his attention that Jess resigned herself to a long wait. She sighed to herself quietly, not that it mattered in the noise.

XxxxxxX

Nick grumbled the whole way to the bar. He hated big, showy parties but that seemed to be the only thing that Schmidt could throw. Nick was looking forward to seeing Winston, but he knew that he wouldn't exactly get to chat to his friend at a typical Schmidt party.

As everyone started to arrive, the place quickly got noisy, crowded and hot. Three of Nick's least favourite things. The queue for the bar was about four leggy blondes deep all the way around, which made him roll his eyes. He wasn't especially interested in looking at the women - they weren't really his type. He just wanted to get to the beer.

It wasn't like Schmidt to have not hired enough bar staff to cope with the number of people. He usually made sure absolutely everything was taken care of at one of his parties. It was one of the few things that Nick appreciated about his organisational skills.

Nick cast his eyes about, looking for Schmidt. He was on his phone, clearly very annoyed. He put the phone in his pocket with a shake of his head and stormed over to Nick.

"Oh, this is a disaster, Nicholas," Schmidt said haughtily.

"I know man," Nick replied. "I can't get a beer!"

"Neither can these attractive women!" Schmidt replied, shouting over the music. "Everyone will leave if they can't get a drink and no women makes for a very sad party for Winston."

Nick actually felt a bit sorry for his friend. For once, his upset wasn't entirely self serving.

"So what's the deal?" Nick asked. "Where's the bar staff?"

"Two no shows... Outrageous!"

"So that's it?"

"No, Nick," Schmidt said, on the verge of rolling his eyes. "The manager is sending more staff over, but they won't be here for more than an hour." He looked really sad. "Winston will only just be arriving then and his party will be ruined."

"Schmidt," Nick said, rolling up his sleeves. "You owe me, BIG."

He made a beeline for the bar and slapped the stressed looking bartender on the back. He looked unbelievably relieved and the pair of them started taking orders to clear the queue, moving quickly and efficiently. Schmidt shot him a look of appreciation and Nick was pretty sure he could see tears rimming his friend's eyes.

Nick quite enjoyed a busy bar at times. It always gave him a rush to do something he knew well in an efficient manner. He moved smoothly and confidently between customers, making quick work of even the most complex orders.

"What can I get ya?" Nick asked the next person in line.

"Oh my god, tea guy!" Jess squealed in reply. "You work here?"

Nick could feel his heart leap and plummet in the same beat. He was so happy to see her and her dazzling sunshine smile, but her seeing him working in a bar brought back every insecurity crashing back to him. One of Caroline's parting shots was that he'd never get a woman to want him when he worked in a bar.

"Uh," he said, not wanting to start looking at his shoes. "I'm just helping out until the actual bar staff get here. There was a bit of a problem and the queue was getting massive."

"Shame," Jess said with a smile. "I always thought bartenders were really cool."

"Maybe we can catch up when they get here and I can tell you all about it," he said, his heart surging in his throat. She didn't seem to be screaming or running, which seemed too good to be true.

"I'd love that, actually," she said, twirling her hair around her finger with a smile. "I might get to know your name."

"I'll come find you when they get here," he said with a huge toothy grin that, unbeknownst to him, made her more than a little weak at the knees. "Drink in the meantime?"

"Two vodka tonics, please," she requested, hoping he couldn't see her heart hammering in her chest, cartoon-style.

He nodded and walked away to get the drinks and she watched his skilful arms and muscular back with appreciation. She wasn't the only one admiring him along the bar, she noted, but he was focused only on her and the drinks. He handed over the completed drinks with a smile.

Her hand brushed his gently as he handed them over, making his heart stop for a beat.

"See you soon, I hope," she said with a smile and almost skipped away from him.

He watched her go, mesmerised. He hadn't even noticed how fantastic she looked in her form hugging dress. He'd been completely taken by surprise seeing her there and had got lost in her face.

"You're in big trouble, Miller," he murmured to himself, before carrying on taking orders.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Nick saw Jess once more in the time that it took for the extra bar staff to arrive. Nick and the other bartender, James, had managed to get the queue under control by that point and were managing to keep it steady, but not manic.

Nick saw Jess walking from the dance floor across the room. He was glad he had time to compose himself before he spoke to her this time. He took deep breaths and gave himself a mental pep talk, preparing for all the eventualities of the conversation that they were about to have.

Jess trotted to the bar with a bounce in her step, her smile huge as she caught Nick's eye.

"What can I get ya, Jess?" Nick asked with a smile. Jess was sure she saw him wink and felt her heart pound in her chest.

"A vodka tonic for my friend and a surprise for me, please," she said with a cheeky grin.

Crap. That was one of the eventualities he hasn't prepared for. The twinkle in her eyes and the mischievous smile very nearly floored him, but he managed to fall back on his years of experience as a bartender to prevent complete and total humiliation.

"I think I need to know a bit more about ya to make it a pleasant surprise," he said with what he hoped was a steady, smooth smile. "Is the lady feeling fruity or more upmarket?"

Jess giggled. "Upmarket today," she said. "I'm usually fruity all the way, but check out the dress. That's upmarket."

Nick gave a low, appreciative chuckle.

"Upmarket with a hint of fruit, I think," he said, busying himself with the drink order.

Jess couldn't believe how easily she could flirt with this guy. He had such a nice way about him that really worked for her. He was obviously trying, which always made a gal feel special, but he seemed to really light up when he talked to her and that was just... She mentally shook herself just in time for him to return.

"Give this a try," he said, a crinkle of worry between his eyebrows. "It's unusual, but I think it might be just what the doctor ordered."

Jess smiled and looked at her drink. It was a greeny-yellow colour in a martini glass, with bright green crystals around the rim. There was a slice of apple gently floating on top of the liquid. She took a sip of it and gasped.

There was a tangy background with a complex, flowery top note. It was delicious and very different. The flavours exploded on her tongue as she swallowed and tugged gently and intoxicatingly on the back of her nasal passages.

"Is that a good thing?" Nick asked, with a smile gently tugging at his lips.

"That's amazing!" Jess enthused.

"The real bartenders should be here soon, so I'll bring you another one when we swap over."

"That would be real kind of ya, partner," Jess said in her favourite old-timey voice. She felt her cheeks flush a little as she turned and walked back to CeCe.

CeCe had been watching Jess with the barman and decided that the time was right for her to find out more. She caught Jess and ordered her to the bathroom.

"Who's the guy, Jess?" CeCe asked with a giant smile.

Jess put the two drinks on a ledge at the side of the sinks and fell back on the cool tiled wall behind them.

CeCe eyed her in the mirror, loving seeing her friend happy for a change. Even when things were fine with Spencer and Jess, she seemed to spend her life worrying and changing what she was doing to make him feel better.

"It's crazy, CeCe," she said with a laugh. "I don't even know his name."

"He couldn't be more into you if he tried, Jess. He only has eyes for you!"

Jess grinned. She hadn't noticed that, but trust CeCe to pick up on a detail like that.

"He's not actually working here," Jess said. "He's covering until the actual bar staff get here, then he said he wants to come see me."

"So, what are you thinking, dirty girl?"

"Nothing like that, CeCe," Jess gave her friend a scandalised look in the mirror. "I just want to talk to the guy."

"Hey, he could be pretty hot," CeCe chuckled. "You know, with a little work."

"He's not one of your pretty guys, CeCe. I like a man to be a little bit rough around the edges."

"Well, if you decide not to come home, text me his name, ok sweetie?"

Jess rolled her eyes. As much as she liked this guy, she wasn't a meaningless sex kinda girl. Besides, she got the feeling that this gruff, handsome stranger could end up being someone special to her.

XxxxxxxX

Nick was glad when the bar staff arrived on the scene. He gave them a very quick handover, said his goodbyes to James - he suspected that he'd made a friend for life there - and made another drink for Jess before grabbing a beer and heading out to the dance floor.

He watched Jess dance around to the music, seemingly lost in her own world. She wasn't like anyone else he had ever met. She didn't seem to care what anyone else thought of her, but she certainly didn't seem self-centred.

He briefly admired her petite frame before tapping her on the back. She whirled round, a little surprised to be shaken out of her dancing fugue. As soon as she registered that it was him, she jumped a little and gave a huge, beaming grin. She mimed over the pounding music that they should go outside where it was a bit quieter and he nodded, looking relieved.

He held the door open for her and took her to a bench that he'd spotted nearby. He handed over the drink and she gave the green crystals on the edge a quick, darting lick with her tongue before thanking him with a grin.

"So you like the drink, eh?" Nick asked her, smiling gently.

"It's weird," she said, watching the apple slice bobbing around. "Good weird, of course. What is it, handsome stranger?"

"Gin and sparkling apple juice," Nick replied, willing his face not to burst into flames of embarrassment at being called handsome. Usually he would bring it up, but this girl seemed to floor him quite regularly.

"It's yummy," Jess declared. "So, are you going to tell me your name or am I going to have to make one up for you?"

Nick gave a throaty chuckle. "Maybe you should make one up for me. What name would suit me, Jess?"

A thrill shot through Jess when he said her name. She also loved it when people played along with her. He was doing well so far.

"I think," she said contemplatively, "you look like a Manfred."

Nick choked on his beer and let out a massive belly laugh. "There's no way I look like a Manfred."

"How about Roscoe?"

"I'm not manly enough to pull off Roscoe, but I'll take it as a compliment."

They carried on their easy back and forth, full of laughter, until they had both finished their drinks. Eventually, Nick had admitted his real name before they started to talk in general about themselves, getting to know each other a little bit better.

"Another drink for m'lady?" Nick asked, enjoying her giggle at his (very rare) silliness.

"Actually, Nick," Jess said, feeling rather bold, "I was wondering if you wanted to get out of here and talk some more. It's so loud, even out here!"

Nick's jaw dropped. He didn't quite know how to respond to that. He didn't know if it was talk that she wanted or talk. She didn't seem the type to just dive in like that and he didn't want to make an idiot out of himself by propositioning her. He wasn't even sure that he was ready to talk just yet... He was still kinda raw from Caroline.

Jess saw his eyes cloud over. Crap, she hadn't meant it like that.

"I do just mean talking," Jess said gently. "I'm just out of a long, kinda cruddy relationship so I'm not looking to rush into anything like that."

She was happy to see him look relieved.

"Yeah, me too," he told her with a wry smile. "Cruddy is just about right."

XxxxxxX


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Nick told Jess that he just wanted to say hey to Winston before they left. He explained that they had been good friends for years and that he had only just arrived at the party. Jess tried to insist that they stayed as she hadn't realized quite how involved Nick was in the party. Nick managed to laugh it off, telling her 'Winnie' would understand and that the loud music and dancing really wasn't his scene.

Jess waited outside for a few minutes, appreciating the cooling breeze across her shoulders while she let her heart stop pounding for a few minutes. Her mind raced with possibilities of where they could go when Nick returned. They had both planned to be drinking a fair amount, so they hadn't brought cars with them which could be a wrinkle in the plan. Not that she particularly cared. He was the most intriguing person she had met in quite some time and she just wanted to make sure that she spent as much time getting to know him as possible.

Nick came out, walking slowly and calmly. He was striding towards her with a purpose, ruffling his hands through his scruffy hair as he moved. He gave her a grin.

"Let's blow this joint," Jess said with a smile, using her best 20s gangster voice.

"This scene's tired, doll," Nick chuckled, matching her impression for impression.

He hailed down a cab and gave the driver an address. As they drove, the pair sat quite far apart on the seats, suddenly feeling a small tug of awareness that they actually hadn't known each other for all that long. Nick stretched his hand across the leather seat and took her hand in his gently. She looked over at him with a surprised smile on her face.

"Confession time," Nick said, not meeting her gaze. "We're going back to my place, but we're not gonna go inside. I love the roof of my apartment building, so I thought that we could go look at the stars and enjoy the lack of dismal music."

Jess smiled and squeezed his hand gently. "We've been clear that we're both not in the right frame of mind for much more than talking," she reassured him softly. "I trust you, Miller."

Nick's head snapped up and his dark, stormy eyes met hers. He fixed her with the biggest grin.

"Glad you trust me, Jess," he said quietly. "It makes such a wonderful change of pace from my ex."

"Ugh," she agreed, "tell me about it. It wasn't me he didn't trust though, it was my judgement."

"Exactly!" Nick's eyes lit up. That had really struck a chord for him. "She always acted like, out of all the options that I had, I'd picked the absolute stupidest one that there was."

Jess laughed in agreement. "Spencer always acted like the choice I'd made would singlehandedly lead to the destruction of humankind."

They carried on talking for the rest of the short cab ride and Jess couldn't help noticing two things: Firstly, the more little things that Nick mentioned about his ex-girlfriend the more she could see his confidence grow - she had clearly done quite a number on him. Secondly, he hadn't let her hand go and the tingling butterflies that came from his touch spread all the way up her arm and fluttered madly in her chest.

Nick paid the driver and the pair of them went into a smart looking apartment building. Still holding her hand, he lead her into the elevator and pushed for the fourth floor. He grabbed his keys from his pocket with his free hand and, when the elevator doors opened, quickly opened the door to apartment 4D.

Jess peered in the doorway as Nick left her there, trying to respectfully show that he really wasn't trying to trick her into his apartment. She gave a little smile of appreciation as her eyes adjusted to the half light.

The loft apartment was spacious and airy, with a slightly industrial feel from the bare brick, wood floors and iron doors. She imagined the light pouring through the huge windows and thought that it would be a really lovely place to live.

Nick hurried back with a small duffel bag in his hand. He pointed out the bathroom in case Jess needed it and grabbed a blue cooler from the floor next to the refrigerator, which was rapidly filled with drinks from the fridge.

As they left the apartment, Nick flipped a switch that seemingly did absolutely nothing. Jess shot him a questioning look, but he just grinned and led her out of the door and up the stairs to the roof. As the door opened, she understood exactly why he loved it up there.

It was higher than its neighbors, so there was a sense of privacy and it made everything else that little bit quieter. You could see the stars really clearly from there. Judging by the mismatch of lawn chairs, big cushions and little tables, she could tell they spent a fair chunk of time up there.

Her eyes caught on some colored fairy lights that just gave enough light to see by at night. She really liked how cute and homey it was, which for a bunch of guys was rather impressive.

Nick was fiddling with his phone, frowning slightly, until music started to softly come out of hidden speakers. He gave Jess a grin and led her to a huge leather beanbag that would quite comfortably hold the both of them. Jess sank into it and slipped off her shoes, grateful for the relief to her aching feet. She tucked her legs close in and to the side of herself.

"Are ya cold?" Nick asked with a kind crinkle at the corner of his eyes.

"Mmm, not yet," Jess replied, "but I probably will be soon."

Nick smiled at her and pulled open the duffel bag. He rooted around and pulled out a rust colored hoodie and gave it to her. He'd grabbed it on the way through the apartment, thinking that a strapless dress probably didn't give much warmth.

"How sweet!" Jess grinned, taking the hoodie and slipping it on around her shoulders.

It was obviously his as it was a bit too big for her, but it was warm and soft. She felt herself go a little giddy as she breathed in the overwhelming scent of him from within the folds of the fabric. She had smelled him a little here and there when they had gotten close to each other, but this was so strong. She filled her lungs with the woody, smooth scent and gave a happy sigh. He smelt wonderfully masculine.

Nick couldn't help but notice that she was taking deep breaths through her nose. It took a beat for him to realize exactly what she was doing and a bubble of worry rose up in his stomach - he knew he didn't wash his hoodies quite as often as he possibly should, but he didn't think they smelled that bad.

When she made a happy noise, his heart stopped for a beat, leaping in his chest, feeling almost like it could fly out of his throat. He couldn't remember ever being so physically affected by someone. It was like experiencing everything for the first time again.

"Caroline always told me I reeked of cheap cologne and misery," Nick told her quietly, taking a seat next to Jess on the beanbag. He was suddenly very aware of how close she was to him. He could feel the warmth of her feet as they grazed his leg.

"I think you smell exactly how a man should smell," she told him firmly, shuffling in the beanbag to move a little closer to him. He handed her a beer and sat back, putting his arm around her without thinking. She settled into him with ease, enjoying his warmth, and they enjoyed a comfortable silence as they started their beers.

The pair started to chat about whatever subjects came to mind. They would stop occasionally to listen to things happening around them or to remark on a particularly nice star. They drank their way through the beers in the cooler, dashing downstairs to use the bathroom on occasion but coming straight back up into the comfort of each others presence sitting together on the beanbag.

They both were feeling a little lightheaded from the beers but with a little tiredness mixed in they had a warm and fuzzy euphoria. Jess gave a little giggle when she heard the birdsong start.

"Damn, Jess," Nick said gruffly. "It's practically sunrise! I can't believe we've been up here all night."

"It doesn't feel like that long," she agreed, snuggling in even closer to him to show him that she actually wasn't going to go anywhere. "Besides, I've always wanted to watch the sunrise from a rooftop with a sexy guy."

"Two out of three's not bad, Jess," Nick said with a soft chortle. "Maybe I can go find you a sexy guy so I don't spoil your evening."

Jess found his self deprecating humor oddly intoxicating. Without really thinking, she kissed him on his slightly bearded cheek.

"I saved you the trouble," she whispered in his ear. "I brought one with me."

His cheek crackled with electricity where here lips had been moments earlier. His head spun and he was grateful that he was sitting down. A huge smile split his face and his fingers brushed along his cheek and over to his ear, almost as though he was trying to trap the sensation there.

She saw him out of the corner of her eye and smiled just as broadly as he did.

Both gasped in unison as the sky started to light up in a deep and rich orange, illuminating the hills around them. It spread upwards, through shades of purple, blue and bright red in a dazzlingly elegant chaos. They watched silently as the top curve of the sun began to poke above the horizon, changing the colors of the sky as it moved. They felt the warmth of the sun touch their skin as it crept further up the sky and sighed together at its beauty.

Nick moved his hand to Jess's chin and gently moved his mouth towards hers. He kissed her tenderly, feeling his heart pounding in his chest and her pulse thundering through his fingertips as their lips touched. The fuzzy glow of the burgeoning morning stroked their cheeks, making the experience a sensually serene one.

Jess's tongue gently probed into Nick's mouth and he responded, one hand burying itself in her hair and the other holding her waist firmly. She deepened the kiss, feeling emboldened by the almost magical feeling that hung in the air. They both lost themselves in the moment, completely consumed by the crackling electrical attraction that sparked intoxicatingly between them.

As the moment came to an end, they gradually moved their mouths apart, stealing little kisses like catching fleeting butterflies, not quite ready to let each other go. They each opened their eyes and found that they had ended up laying down, wrapped up in each other, not quite knowing how they had got there.

They gave each other a smile and sat up slowly, not breaking eye contact.

"Best kiss ever," Jess breathed.

Nick laughed and gave her a peck on the cheek, holding her hand while they watched the bottom half of the sun finally, and almost lazily, break free from the ground to allow the green of the hills to show themselves.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

After the sun had fully risen, Jess yawned with her whole body, stretching and rubbing her eyes sleepily. Nick couldn't help but smile.

"Maybe I should think about getting you back home," Nick said softly, barely stifling his own yawn.

"I'll just sleep here," Jess said quietly, snuggling into the beanbag, looking small and utterly adorable.

"You can't sleep here," Nick said. "A weird cat bird comes here in the daytime. Schmidt's petrified of it eating his face off, or something."

Jess laughed sleepily. "I never was particularly attached to my face."

"Take my bed if you like. I can grab some sleep on the couch."

"Maybe we can just go to your bed and sleep like this. I'm so comfy and warm under your arm."

"Ok," he said, chuckling gently. "But no funny business. I'm not that kind of boy."

Jess laughed and tiredly pulled herself out of the comfort of the squashy beanbag, which had moulded itself perfectly to the two of them throughout the course of the night. They shuffled downstairs, Nick's arm never leaving her shoulders the whole time that they were moving. He opened the door and they headed to his room.

"'Scuse the mess," Nick mumbled. It was actually pretty tidy by his standards, but he knew that it would never be up to lady standards.

"Mmm, what mess?" Jess murmured with a smile. "Need bed."

They both collapsed heavily on the bed and resumed their position from the roof, with Jess nestling in the crook of Nick's armpit, snuggled in close against him. Within seconds, they were both in a deep and comfortable sleep.

Hours later, Jess woke up with a jolt as a cheerful ditty filled the room. Jess patted the pockets of Nick's hoodie that she was still wearing and pulled her phone out of her pocket.

"Hey CeCe," Jess said sleepily. "How you doing?"

"Hey Jess," CeCe replied, with a knowing smile playing about her lips. "So?"

"So?" Jess answered, half asleep and still confused.

"So, where are you? What are you up to? Tell me everything!"

"We were just asleep," Jess told her friend, unable to stop the happiness from spilling into her voice. "We stayed up all night talking."

"Talking, riiiiight," CeCe said, a little unsure as to whether her friend was telling the truth. On the one hand, she wasn't the sort to rush into the physical stuff, but on the other hand she was clearly asleep with him!

Nick was half asleep and Jess didn't want to talk about the time stopping, earth shattering kiss in front of him.

"We kissed, that's all," Jess said firmly.

"Well, be safe, sweetie," CeCe said cheerfully. "I just wanted to make sure you hadn't been axe murdered or anything!"

"I know, thanks CeCe," Jess said, hanging up with a smile.

Nick grunted as Jess settled back into him. "That's all?" he asked, with a cheeky smile. "You undersell such a great kiss."

"I know," Jess chuckled. "I didn't want to give you a big head so early on in the relationship."

Nick couldn't help but smile at the word 'relationship'. Clearly this wonderful woman thought that they were going somewhere. It was far too early to tell where, but he thought she was pretty special and she, for some reason, liked him back. They both laid back, not quite willing to let the perfect bubble of happiness that they were temporarily living in burst.

"I don't want to be weird," Jess said quietly. "Well, no weirder than usual, anyway. But I was wondering if you had plans for today. I'd love to go do something with you if that's ok." The words tumbled out in a rush, showing that she had a hint of nerves. That melted Nick's heart.

"That's not weird, Jess," he said gently. "I'd love to spend the day with you."

Jess grinned goofily. "What shall we do?"

Nick furrowed his brow for a moment, thinking hard. "I hereby challenge you," he said grandly, "to a game of mini-golf."

Jess hugged him tightly. "Challenge accepted!"

Nick left the room to make Jess some tea. He brought it to her in bed, plonking a hastily made black coffee for himself on the table by the bed. It felt oddly domestic, but in a way that made him smile. He grabbed some clean(ish) clothes and left her leafing through one of his old comic books while he took a quick shower and hastily got dressed in the bathroom.

Jess smiled at him when he reappeared.

"Thor's pretty hot, you know," she told him, waving the comic book at him. He could just about make out the muscular, blond cartoon character on its pages. "I almost forgot about you!"

He laughed, enjoying her teasing him gently. He loved the tentative flirting, the closeness and the raw attraction that was going between them. He found it utterly intoxicating. Plus, the one, absolutely amazing, earth shattering kiss, made him want to find out much more about this incredible woman. He thanked his lucky stars that he decided to go into the tearoom that day.

The pair left the sanctuary of Nick's bedroom and made it out of the door before any of Nick's roommates saw them. They both were slightly relieved as they weren't quite ready for an audience. Plus, with Jess being in last night's outfit looking a bit sleep rumpled, it could take a bit of explanation.

Nick drove Jess to CeCe's house and arranged to come back in half an hour - he said he'd run some errands, but Jess suspected that he didn't want to meet her roommates in the same way that she hadn't wanted to meet his just yet. She wasn't even sure she wanted to see CeCe as this... whatever it is... is too difficult to explain.

"Hey, sweetie," CeCe said as Jess walked through the door. "Good night?"

"We kissed," Jess sighed contentedly, flopping down on the couch with a huge cheesy grin.

"Looks like it was terrible," CeCe said with joking sarcasm. "That smile says it all!"

"Oh my god," Jess said breathlessly. "We watched the sunrise and when we kissed it was like magic. We were," she floundered slightly for the words to describe such a physical sensation, "we were like energy, floating together. I lost myself completely in the moment there. It was amazing!"

"You're in trouble, girl," CeCe said with a chuckle.

They talked for a few more minutes, with CeCe filling her in on the sleazy guy she'd had to fend off all night, until Jess realized that she should go get showered and ready to go out. Explaining briefly what she was doing to her friend, Jess skipped out of the room.

Jess got ready quickly and ran down to meet Nick. He was waiting for her, sitting on the hood of his car, laying back across the windshield with his hands laced casually behind his head. He looked so relaxed and happy that it brought a smile to Jess's face. She knew from talking to him that he had a grumpiness in him that she found immensely cute, but he also had such a kind and gentle spirit that she couldn't help but feel fondness for him already.

Nick was lost in thought, remembering their conversations from the night before. He hadn't been able to just talk to someone for that long since he was at college. Even then, he was too self conscious to really enjoy it. But something about her quirky, goofy, funny and gentle nature made him feel at ease and more confident and sure of himself. A smile tugged at his lips as he laid in the cool afternoon sun.

"A challenger appears!" Jess cried as she skipped over and ruffled Nick's hair. She wasn't quite sure why she did it, but feeling his soft, gently spiky hair between her fingers made her happy.

They drove to the mini-golf place not too far away and got out of the car. They walked close together, bumping into each other on purpose and blushing like school kids.

Nick paid for a round of golf and handed Jess a club and a bright orange ball. He grabbed the head of the club and held it upside down like a gentleman's cane. He threw his black ball up in the air and caught it a few times.

"So," Jess laughed, "the fancy man thinks he's an expert, does he?"

"You might say I have some expertise in the ball area," he said with a suggestive wink.

"Boys," Jess said with mock exasperation. "It's all balls with you!"

"Put your balls where your mouth is, Day," Nick said, grinning cheekily.

"You'd like that, Miller," Jess retorted, running away from him to the first hole.

Nick caught her by the arm, just before she reached the hole and grabbed her. He pulled her towards him and grabbed her one armed round the waist. She squirmed under his arm playfully.

"I see how it is, Nick. This is going to be a cheat's game. That's not how I roll. I'm going to win honestly, with no shenanigans."

"No shenanigans? But I thought that was in the rules of mini-golf!"

While the pair waited for the small queue to abate at the first hole, they decided to make new rules. It became an elaborate game, halfway between a board game and regular mini-golf, with all kinds of strange caveats and punishments throughout.

They played all 18 holes, laughing until their sides hurt. Jess's favorite moment was when Nick rebounded his ball three times and as punishment had to take the next shot using the wrong end of his club. Needless to say, he missed the ball several times and when he finally did manage to hit it, it spun wildly and he ended up further away from the hole, back on the path.

Nick's personal highlight was when Jess got her ball in the water feature. That meant that she got a mulligan with no shot penalty, but as penance had to sing the national anthem, hopping on one foot before she could proceed. He had expected her to be embarrassed, but she looked him straight in the eye throughout the whole thing and, true to the rules, she gave a massive salute with her club at the end.

Jess was the winner of the game by 400 points, which, under the new rules, was by the thinnest of margins. Nick demanded that they have a rematch the following week to refine the game further and crown the true winner. Jess gladly accepted, but mentioned that it might be something that would benefit from more people playing.

Nick imagined Schmidt having to do some of the things they had cooked up and gave a chuckling agreement.

"So," Nick said as he reached his car, not really wanting the day to end. "Mini-golf next Sunday and I'm still meeting you next Friday before work for tea."

"I thought you might have forgotten tea," Jess said with a grin.

"Are you kidding?" Nick said bashfully, reaching across and stroking her shoulder.

"I thought you were just going back to Cloud 9 to meet me," she replied, just as bashfully. "You met me last night instead!"

"As well, you mean," he said firmly. "I love that place and I'm really looking forward to it."

"Me too," Jess replied, holding his gaze with a sparkling smile. "So, Friday, then Sunday. How about dinner in the week?" She felt a spark of worry that she may have acted too keen and put him off.

"The only night I'm not working is Tuesday," he replied eagerly. "Would that work?"

"Perfect!" She breathed a sigh of relief. They were clearly on the same page.

"Great! That was exhausting," he said, putting his arm around her shoulders. "I think we need some dinner to recover from all that organization and sporting prowess."

"I am pretty hungry," she agreed, smiling as he opened the car door for her.

He dashed around the car and jumped into the drivers seat. He took her hand gently in his as he drove away from the parking lot. She grinned at him, looking forward to spending the rest of the evening together.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Jess and Nick finished their dinner and he drove her home very slowly. They both weren't entirely willing to let such a wonderful experience come to an end. They sat in the car, chatting with ease, until Jess spotted that time was creeping on and she had work in the morning.

"I've had the most wonderful 24 hours with ya," Nick said, not quite able to look her in the eye, so he examined his knee. He wasn't used to getting a good response when he put himself out there.

"Me too, Nick," Jess said reassuringly, putting her hand on his knee. "I wish this weekend could last forever!"

"I'm sure work's overrated," he chuckled ruefully. He managed to bring his eyes up to drink in the sight of her huge blue eyes for the last time that day.

Jess brought her hand up to his cheek and stroked it gently with her thumb. He nuzzled into her hand with the gentlest smile creeping on to his face. She moved her hand up into the hair on the back of his neck and, before she realized what she was doing, she pulled him towards her.

Nick felt her tug him towards her and gave a tiny gasp of surprise. That was all the encouragement he needed - as if he had been resisting kissing her all day. The minuscule part of his brain that was left after the rest of it melted into a cacophony of lightning at her touch told him that he actually _had_ been resisting kissing her for every second since he kissed her for the first time.

Their lips touched gently and Jess's fingers grabbed his hair firmly. Her heart pounded as they deepened their kiss. Nick's hands pulled her in close. One hand went round her waist and the other slid up her back and tangled in her hair. Nick pulled her closer still, almost as though he was trying to merge their bodies together.

Jess grabbed him tightly, trying to do the same. She moved her hand from the soft hair on the back of his neck and scratched the scruffy growth on his jaw. She moaned quietly against him, lost again in the moment.

Nick heard her pleasure and felt a surge of heat flash through his body. His pulse quickened, making him kiss her even harder. He felt a shiver of surprise and anticipation as she responded, moving her body up and over the gear stick to get closer to him. He moved his arm down to her hips to help her get as close as possible.

They eased their mouths apart a little, both struggling for air with the depth of their kisses. Jess panted, peppering him with kisses and running her hands across his muscular back and arms. Nick's chest went tight, each short breath from her making his heart thud with a thrill. He kissed her again, with an electrifying firmness.

Reluctantly, Jess pulled herself away from him. She didn't trust her voice at that moment. She needed to let her body recover from the incredible rush of kissing Nick. It was like a total sensory overload, in an amazingly wonderful way.

Nick cleared his throat, shaking the stars from his eyes.

"That's one way to say goodnight, I guess," Nick said softly, stroking her cheek.

"I'm in favor of it," Jess replied, her voice a little shaky and her breath not quite even yet.

She gave him a peck on the cheek and got out of the car. Nick shook his head and laughed, pulling away as she waved goodbye under CeCe's watchful eye from the doorway.

Jess smiled as his brake lights started to get smaller. Suddenly they lit up brightly in the darkness and his reverse light came on. Her face frowned in confusion as he pulled up level with her.

He hopped out of the car and bounded over, leaving the door open in his haste. He kissed her again, deeply and wonderfully. Her body lit up again, throwing her arms around him and kissing him back.

She didn't know he had lifted her up until he put her down and parted his lips from hers. She beamed at him, not knowing quite what to say and seeing stars of her own.

Nick's cheeks flushed with exhilaration. He grinned back at her toothily, his eyes twinkling.

"I just realized that I never got your number," Nick chuckled.

"And you wanted to make sure I didn't give you a fake number," Jess smiled. "Smart move, Nick. Blow my mind, then ask me questions to guarantee the truth."

Nick's grin went up a couple of notches. They exchanged numbers, giggling and blushing as they did. Nick gave Jess a peck on the cheek and got back in the car. He made a show of messing around with his phone, but really he just wanted to watch her go.

Jess skipped over to CeCe and gave her a hug.

"Oh my god, Jess," CeCe squealed. "That was amazing. He just came back and..."

"I know! All of his kisses are as amazing as the first one. It's incredible!"

Nick could very faintly hear what the two women said. His heart skipped a beat and he couldn't wipe the grin from his face as he drove away into the night.

XxxxxX

Once Nick had parked his car, he floated up to his apartment. His mind was swirling madly with memories of what had happened with Jess. Every second had been absolutely breathtaking and he couldn't believe his luck that she seemed to be just as invested in their burgeoning relationship as he was.

He opened the door and greeted his three roommates with a bigger grin than they'd seen grace his face for quite some years. They had all spoken briefly about the new girl that he had met after Nick had left the party abruptly. The fact that they hadn't seen him since spoke volumes.

"Spill it, Nick" Coach said, grinning. "Schmidt and I didn't heft all Winston's stuff in here without you for a workout."

"That's right, Nicholas," Schmidt said with a condescending tone. "These two insisted that I do all the work and I think I've put muscles in places that are tacky."

Nick raised his eyebrow. He went to the fridge and grabbed four beers and sat down on the couch in enigmatic silence.

"Come on Nick," Winston said, grabbing a beer and sitting back. "I know you're the strong, silent type, but we need to know where you've been."

"Damnit, Nick!" Schmidt chimed in. "We need some kind of vicarious thrill to forget the boxes of Winston's Latvian crap we've been hauling all day." Winston shot Schmidt a glare.

Nick smiled and gave his friends the concise version of what he had been up to with Jess over the past day. He glossed over some of the fluffier bits - he didn't want to lose all his man points in one day - but mostly he told them how funny, quirky, crazy and utterly wonderful he thought she was.

They all told him how pleased they were for him. Since Caroline, he had been through the emotional wringer and it was so great to see him happy after months of being in a funk. Whether this girl and Nick worked out, it was good for him to feel worthy of someone for a change. She was obviously the breath of fresh air that he needed.

Nick headed to bed, still walking on air. He laid down on his bed and allowed himself to think back to their kisses. He could feel his heart start to pound and his breath grow a little shallower as he remembered the feel of her lips on his, her hands grabbing him desperately, grabbing his hair. His hand went to the back of his head, remembering how electrified his skin was at her touch.

XxxxX

Monday passed at a snail's pace for Nick and Jess. They carried on with their work and other responsibilities on autopilot, becoming lost in thought several times. Although, if Monday was a crawl, Tuesday was worse. It was an agonizingly slow creep that just wouldn't end.

Nick was practically crawling out of his skin all afternoon. He wasn't working that day, so he just had endless time to fill. He was so restless that he couldn't sit still for more than a few seconds. In the end, he borrowed some of Schmidt's workout equipment and tried to dispel his nervous energy by doing something physical.

It was fairly effective, to the point that Nick lost track of time for a while. Suddenly, he went from having so much time that he didn't know what to do to running late. He put Schmidt's equipment away carefully - he didn't want to have to sit through the 'Things That Don't Belong To Me' talk yet again.

He hadn't planned to have to shower again and hadn't allowed himself time for it. He swore under his breath and shook his head. He couldn't go out all sweaty, so he decided that he'd have to dash for a shower.

Nick had never showered so fast in his life. He ran out of the bathroom, almost losing his footing as he slipped and slid to his bedroom. He towelled himself off vigorously and threw on his black jeans and a crisp white shirt that he had thankfully prepared earlier. His hair was still a bit damp, but he should already have left ten minutes before.

He put on his socks and shoes and ran out of the apartment at top speed. He got to his car and felt a lump in his throat as he saw four pieces of floppy rubber where tyres should have been. He couldn't believe that he had screwed this up already.

He ran out to the main road, trying to hail a cab. After the third taxi zipped past him, Nick's heart sank. Then, with a gust of wind, rain started to fall from the sky in massive globs, soaking him through to his skin in an instant.

Nick ran for shelter in a shop doorway. He checked the time on his phone - he was already five minutes late. He almost dropped his phone as it started ringing in his hand. It was Jess!

"Hey,' he said, not completely sure of what to say.

"Hi Nick," Jess said. Her bright voice made him feel a little better and the boulder in his throat got a little bit smaller. "I was just checking I had the right time. I know it's only five past, but I thought maybe I had the wrong time or something. That's so me..."

"I'm so sorry Jess," Nick said plaintively. "I was running a few minutes late, then someone slashed my tyres, then the _god damn cabs_ wouldn't stop and I got soaked... I'm so sorry."

"Walk back to your apartment," Jess said. "I'll come get you. It sounds like you need me to take you out for dinner."

Nick felt a wave of relief wash over him. "You're the best Jess!"

Jess was completely ready for her date, so she just reached into her bag and pulled her keys out. She got straight into her car and drove a little faster than she should have to Nick's apartment building. It didn't take long to get there and she saw him standing in the rain waiting for her. He came over and got into the passenger seat and she drove to a parking garage a few hundred yards away.

She parked up and looked over at him with a gasp, partly shock and partly desire. His white shirt was plastered to his body, soaked through. It was almost see through and she couldn't quite keep her eyes off him.

"Thanks for coming, Jess," Nick said. "I'm such an idiot, I'm so sorry."

Jess couldn't look up from his chest, no matter how hard she tried. "You're not an idiot, Nick," she said as reassuringly as she could while licking her lips and flashing lustful gazes his way. "You just had the worst day ever!"

Her eyes moved with his chest as he started to laugh with relief.

"You look lovely, by the way," Nick told her. He noticed her staring at him. "That's more than I can say for me. I must look like a drowned rat."

"It's working for you," she murmured. "I mean, _really_ working for you."

"Seriously?" he asked incredulously. "Soggy white shirts do it for ya, huh?"

Jess didn't answer. She just bit her lip, looking him up and down before looking him in the eye. The pure want in her eyes lit a fire inside Nick. They both were breathing heavily, the atmosphere in the car was suddenly thick with lustful tension.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Their eyes were locked. They noticed faintly that the windows were starting to steam up from Nick's wet clothing.

"I'm not sure how to say this," Jess said, a lusty smile quirking her lips. "I know we both weren't ready to do things, but... uh..."

Nick made a surprised noise, matching her lusty smile with one of his own. "That feels like a lifetime ago," he supplied in a gruff voice.

"Exactly," she murmured. "Could we, uh, go up to your place?"

Nick's heart thundered in his chest, threatening to rip his rib cage to shreds. He didn't quite trust his voice, so he simply got out of the car and ran to her side of the car and opened her door. Grabbing her hand, they sprinted through the rain together, covering the distance to Nick's apartment quickly.

As they ran, Jess felt a warm knot in the pit of her stomach. It sat deep within her, throwing out waves of lustful energy to her whole body, making the nerve endings on her skin hyper sensitive. She could feel her clothes as they swished across her skin with every movement. The rain drops hit her, lighting up her nervous system like a christmas tree. She was incredibly aware of his rough hand holding hers tightly and heat emanated upwards from every millimeter of skin that he touched.

They ran straight into the building, dashed through the lobby and into the elevator. The few seconds that they were still in the elevator were charged with electric energy crackling between them. They could hear their hearts pounding and their quickened breathing in the absolute silence.

Nick grabbed his keys and almost fumbled them as he opened the door to the apartment.

"Jess, everyone, everyone, Jess" Nick shouted by way of introduction to his three friends sitting on the couch, not taking his eyes off Jess as he pulled her through the living room and into his bedroom.

He slammed the door behind him and they were still locked in each others' stare.

"That'll be embarrassing later," Jess said with a smile. "But my mind is otherwise occupied right now."

Nick backed her slowly up against the door and moved his body close to hers, not quite touching but so close that the raw magnetism between them was intense. They both visibly shook with the effort of staying apart, but did it for how incredible the anticipation felt.

Jess bit her lip. Her warm stomach knot was now throwing tidal wave after tidal wave of chest tightening, face warming anticipatory pleasure. She could feel something like a sigh building deep within her.

Nick moved his head close to her ear. She could feel his breath on her and it raised goosebumps across her entire body, starting at her earlobe and working outwards until it reached her feet. She gave a soft whimper.

That was Nick's tipping point. He kissed her harder than the previous times, pulling her roughly upwards and pinning her against the door. She kissed him back just as hard, their tongues warring against each other. Nick picked her up in a bear hug and carried her across to the bed, throwing her down roughly.

As she bounced on his mattress, she smiled to reassure him that she was enjoying the experience so far. He smiled back and bundled on top of her, putting just enough pressure on her so that she was restricted but not squashed. She kissed him again, clawing at his damp shirt. As she raked her fingers across his chest, she felt his shirt buttons pop open with satisfaction.

She pushed his shirt off his shoulders and, breaking the kiss for a moment, he sat up. He was straddling Jess, holding her legs tight with his. He looked at her, still with her coat done up, and threw his shirt across the room. It hit the floor with a wet slap.

Jess couldn't stop looking at his now naked top half. She smiled and touched the area just above the waistband of his jeans, wishing that she could reach more of him and glad that she was held down where she couldn't. It was a delightful paradox.

The feeling of her fingertips on him made his chest flush bright red. She caressed all the squidgy bits that he hated, making him feel more wanted than he had in years. He slowly and painstakingly unbuttoned her jacket and she wiggled underneath him to free her arms from the coat. It gave her a little bit more reach and she managed to get her hands as high as his belly button.

She dragged her nails across the surface of his skin, which made him growl with desire. He looked down at her as she laid underneath him, enjoying the sensation of her wiggling beneath him, so full of lustful desire that she struggled to touch him. She was incredibly beautiful with her long, curly dark hair spread out across the bed.

He smiled and kissed her again, with a pressure of pleasure building within him. He moved to release her from beneath him and she sat up quickly, grinning at him. She practically launched herself across the bed to touch him again and he smiled and laughed, wondering how he had got this lucky.

As Nick unzipped her dress and slid it over her head, she gasped with anticipation. They were grinning at each other, barely able to look each other in the eyes as they were distracted by taking in the sheer amount of flesh that they were now displaying.

"If you... you know... as well as you kiss," Jess said, panting with desire yet blushing slightly, "then this is going to be amazing."

Nick smiled as he allowed his hands and his mouth to rove across her body, exploring every part of her, now both naked aside from their underwear. He took note of the areas that he touched to make her giggle and also the parts that made her gasp.

"I'll try not to disappoint ya," he said in a low growl. "I've got big plans for you, Jess."

A thrill of desire shot through Jess's body. She couldn't believe that she was sitting in her underwear with someone who was a stranger less than a week ago, but she was completely comfortable with it. It felt like she had known him in another lifetime.

Jess lost herself in another of Nick's incredible kisses, her body melting into his. Before they knew it, they had removed their underwear and were reveling in the warmth of their skin touching. They both felt the electricity of their caresses.

Realizing that they were about to reach the point of no return, Jess smiled at Nick to show him that she was sure that it was the right step to take. Wordlessly, he pulled her in even closer. As they allowed the last unconnected parts of themselves to finally unite, Jess moaned happily and gave Nick a huge grin.

Nick grinned back and kissed her deeply. They started to move in unison, feeling wave after wave of pleasure as pressures built within them. Neither could say how long they were like that as they felt the world around them disappear. It was just the two of them in their own universe, their moans and gasps the only sounds and their bodies filling with powerful sensations of electricity and desire.

Jess felt the warm pressure within herself grow until it released in an ecstatic wave and she cried out to him, pulling him in close and kissing him over and over. Nick put as much of his skin in contact with hers as he could, holding her as tightly as he could until he felt he might break her. His movements became jerky and uneven as he felt his own pressure reaching breaking point.

Not quite wanting the moment to end, Nick concentrated fiercely on Jess, distracting himself from the waves of pressure crashing within himself. Jess saw the look of determination in his eyes and slowed her movements slightly, understanding what it meant. She pulled him in close and nibbled his earlobe, grabbing his hair tightly in her fingers.

Nick savored the moment, enjoying the incredible sensation of being surrounded by this wonderful woman feeling almost as though they had briefly become one person. He breathed in her scent and kissed her deeply.

Jess could feel that Nick was almost at his end and started to speed her movements up once more. Their breathing became ragged and their bodies sang with happiness. The final burst of pressure exploded within them both and they moaned and grasped each other tightly, kissing each other desperately.

They laid together, unable to stop running their hands over each others' skin. They both were breathing heavily, their legs shaky and their hearts pounding. They grinned at each other, gazing into each others eyes with wordless satisfaction.

"Did that beat a kiss?" Nick asked. He was trying to keep it light, but his voice betrayed him by showing a hint of nervousness.

"You're kidding, right?" Jess breathed. She looked at his face and realized that he wasn't. "That was incredible! I think I left my body at one point."

Nick grinned. "You don't have to say that, you know."

"If I didn't, I'd be a liar and that's really not my style," she said reassuringly. "Didn't you enjoy it then?" Her eyes twinkled with mischief.

"Oh god, Jess," Nick whispered. "It was... so amazing that I can't think of words to do it justice. Shit, that's corny."

Jess laughed and hugged him tightly. She peppered his face with tiny kisses and he snuggled in closer to her, enjoying the feeling of fire that followed in the wake of her touch.

"It looks like corny works for ya," Nick said with a laugh. "Weirdo!"

"Hey, that's why you like me, Miller."

"Very true! That and you're incredible in bed."

"You're no slouch," she said with a laugh.

"You totally made me not mind the disaster that happened before this," he chuckled, squeezing her.

Jess grinned in reply. "You still want to go out for dinner?"

"How about a pizza in bed?" He gave her such a huge smile that her heart melted. She couldn't resist that gorgeous man.

"Go on then," she said, returning his smile. "Then we might have to see what other big plans you have for me."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Jess and Nick laid together, tangled up in each other. The empty pizza box had been thrown unceremoniously on the floor. When Nick had dropped some pizza on himself, Jess had ended up licking it off him, which had led to other things.

They both giggled, their eyes locking together. They talked for a while, caressing each other gently with their hands as they did so. Nick glanced at the clock on his bedside table.

"Did you want to stay over, Jess? You should get some sleep if you've got work in the morning."

Jess had completely lost track of time. She had gotten so wrapped up in Nick and the unexpected _stuff_ that she rather appreciated his thoughtfulness. She was torn - she didn't have anything with her so she'd struggle to get to work in the morning, but equally she didn't want to leave.

"I'd really love to stay over," Jess told him sincerely.

"But..." Nick supplied.

"But I didn't bring any clothes or anything. I'd struggle in the morning."

Nick nodded, with a smile. He'd guessed as much. He didn't quite know when it had happened, but he had become rather addicted to Jess at some point. He didn't want to let her go and didn't even want to stop touching her.

They managed to get dressed with only a few diversions and Nick walked Jess down to her car. He waved her off and trudged back inside, missing her touch already. He decided to text her, so that she had the message for when she got home.

'_Hey Jess. Can't wait for Friday. Tonight was amazing and you're incredible.'_

He must have rewritten the message ten times before finally sending it. A nervous knot formed itself in his stomach. He wondered if he was being an idiot or being too keen. He wished he could unsend it.

"Miller, you're an idiot," he murmured to himself softly.

Nick wandered out to the kitchen to grab a beer. His three friends looked up at him, grinning.

"She seems nice," Coach said with a massive grin.

"Not very talkative, but really pretty," Winston chipped in, smiling.

Nick's cheeks flamed bright red. "Sorry I didn't make proper introductions, but we were uh..."

"Horny?" Schmidt supplied.

"Jar!" they all chorused.

Before he could reply, Nick's phone made a chirp to indicate that he had a message.

_'Hi Nick. Can't wait for Friday either. Wish I didn't have to go home.'_

Nick grinned at his phone, reading the message over and over. His eyebrows raised in surprise at the second chirp.

_'Can't believe I've only known you a week. You're great!'_

He giggled, forgetting he was surrounding by men. They proceeded to mock him for making such a girly noise. He managed to run away, escaping with his beer and his phone to his room.

_'Sweet dreams, Jess. I can tell this is going to be the start of something great.'_

_'Sweet dreams, Nick. Glad we're on the same page!'_

Jess laid back on CeCe's couch, sighing with a mixture of happiness and fulfillment. She hugged a pillow tightly and fell quickly into a peaceful sleep.

XxxxX

Friday finally arrived. Jess practically sprinted out of work to get home and get ready to meet Nick. They'd been texting and calling each other on a pretty much constant basis since they had seen each other on Tuesday. They found that their banter was just as easy by phone and messaging as it was in person.

Jess put on the electric blue dress that she had bought what seemed like a lifetime ago. She twirled in front of the mirror, checking how she looked before slipping her matching pumps on her feet. She put the finishing touches on her makeup and brushed her curly hair before she skipped out the door.

Nick had decided the day before that he would surprise Jess by taking the night off work so that they could spend the whole evening together. He had done so many extra shifts at the bar while since he'd split up with Caroline that they didn't mind at all. In fact, they seemed pleased for him that he had a date.

He had excited, nervous butterflies in his stomach. He got ready quickly, leaving himself plenty of time but not so much that he drove himself mad. He had learned from the previous misfortune. He put on his favorite jeans and black shirt, rolling up his sleeves and slipping on a jacket before he left.

On his way to the Cloud 9 tearoom, Nick diverted to a flower cart and grabbed a huge bunch of brightly colored tulips. The seller wrapped them carefully in bright blue paper, covered it with matching cellophane and secured it all with an orange ribbon tied in a big bow. Nick thanked her and carried on along his way.

As he rounded the final corner, he saw Jess as she dashed into the tearoom. She was obviously happy as she was practically skipping with every step. Nick beamed and ran the last few hundred feet, taking a deep breath before heading through the door.

Jess stood up to greet him. He thrust the flowers at her with a smile and then grabbed her in his arms, pulled her up in the air and kissed her deeply.

"I missed you, Jess," he whispered in her ear, giving her goosebumps.

"Missed you too, Nick," Jess murmured. "Thank you for the beautiful flowers."

They sat down together, grinning like idiots. They held hands and ordered a big pot of tea and cakes to share. When it arrived, they chatted amiably, laughing at each others' terrible jokes.

"I'm not going to make you late, am I?" Jess asked, trying to hide her reluctance to let him leave her.

"I have a little confession to make," Nick said, his eyes sparkling. He leaned in conspiratorially. "I took the night off so I could take you out."

Jess gave a little yelp of delight and clapped her hands together.

"Only if you want me to, of course," Nick said. "If you have plans already or whatever, that's fine too."

"I'll tell my other boyfriend that Nick Miller wants me to hang out. Who am I to say no to that guy?"

Nick laughed. The word 'boyfriend' hung in the air between them and for the first time ever, he was pleased about it. He pushed half of that thought to the back of his mind, deciding that he would have to make his peace later with having never been entirely happy with a relationship that spanned six years and hadn't realized it.

Jess worried for a split second about having called Nick her boyfriend. They hadn't labelled it yet and she didn't want to scare him off. She was always the one that loved first and loved most, so she tried to rein it in a little bit.

"I thought that we could drive out to a little diner I know just out of town. It does the best barbecue."

"It's not Uncle Joe's, is it?" Jess asked, wide eyed.

"Damn, Jess," Nick laughed. "How did you know?"

"I love that place! I was going to ask you how you knew I went there too."

"I used to go there to get away from Caroline. She hated barbecue. Who hates barbecue, right?"

"What's to hate?" Jess said with a chuckle.

They finished up their tea and headed outside. They walked along hand in hand back to Nick's apartment building to collect his car and head out to the diner. He had managed to get some cheap tyres to replace his slashed ones that morning.

"Hey, Jess," Nick said, feeling suddenly awkward. "I don't want to be forward or weird or anything..." he trailed off, not quite knowing why he'd brought it up.

"What's wrong, Nick?" Jess asked with concern in her voice.

He scratched the back of his neck and felt his forehead crinkle. He frowned.

"You're making a weird turtle face, Nick," Jess said, half laughing, half concerned.

Nick laughed at himself. "I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to come back here after dinner. If you did, I'll take ya home to get an overnight bag." He blushed a bit as the words tumbled out in a rush.

"That's really thoughtful, Nick," Jess replied, genuinely touched. "That would be really great, actually."

Nick smiled. He seemed to be able to make her happy really easily. He had never experienced that in any relationship and it was a great feeling. He pulled away, heading towards Jess's apartment. He went indoors with her and met her friend CeCe.

CeCe was intimidating in a leggy model kind of way. Nick wasn't totally sure what to say to her, so he made awkward small talk. He almost felt as though he was a teenager, meeting his girlfriend's parents for the first time. She asked him where they were going, what they were doing, when they might be back.

"Don't give the poor guy a hard time, CeCe," Jess called from another room. "You're being scary again."

Nick laughed, looking down at his shoes as CeCe shot the doorway an outraged look.

After a few moments, Jess reappeared with an overnight bag and quickly put her tulips in water. She hugged her friend, who seemed to be getting ready to go out herself, and she and Nick left shortly after.

They listened to music as they drove, leaving the lights, noise and heavily populated areas behind them. The road got more and more open as they drove. Jess kept bursting into song and Nick couldn't help but laugh. He thought that she was being extremely cute!

They talked about the following day and their new rules mini-golf rematch. Jess had managed to convince CeCe to join them and Nick had persuaded Schmidt, only after he had told him that Jess's friend was a model. Coach and Winston had a meeting at the bank to secure funding for their gym, so they had assured Nick that they would come next time.

Nick pulled up in the parking lot of the diner and they both grinned. Uncle Joe's had a big sign on top of it showing its name in huge lit red letters. It was a bit old and careworn, but to Nick it meant an oasis of brief spells of happiness.

"Hey, Jess," he said, not yet leaving the car. "Can I ask you something? I don't want this to sound weird, but it's about my ex, Caroline."

"Sure," Jess said simply. It was probably a little odd to keep discussing their exes, but it seemed to do them both good.

"The more time I spend with you," he began slowly, trying to find the right words, "the more I realize that I was unhappy for pretty much my whole relationship. Why do you think I didn't know how miserable I was?"

Jess could tell that it had taken a lot for Nick to bring this up. He had told her when they had spent their first night talking together that he didn't feel totally comfortable talking about Caroline and especially about the bad bits. She had told him that he needed to get it out of his system so he could start his healing process.

"I think I was the same with Spencer, actually," Jess said quietly. "You just go through the motions. Sure, you liked them to start with, but gradually, with all the judgement and telling offs and craziness, you start losing your confidence. You don't actually realize you're not you any more."

"I feel like I've lived another life," Nick replied softly. "It's like, I was a kid, then at college, then life stopped for Caroline and now you're helping me to restart it."

"That's so sweet, Nick," Jess said with her eyes full of tears. "I was trying so hard with Spencer. I wanted to try to get it back on track because I knew we both weren't happy, deep down, and he didn't even want to bother trying. He just wanted me to pay his rent while he screwed around."

A big fat tear slipped down her cheek and splashed on to Nick's wrist. He brought his big, warm, work roughened hands up to cup her face gently. He moved his thumbs across her cheeks to dry her tears and looked deep into her eyes.

"We're quite the pair, aren't we, Jess?" Tears rimmed his eyes as well. "We're so screwed up, but it's almost like we wouldn't have ended up with each other if we weren't. It's made me hate Caroline just a teeny bit less." He shot Jess a watery smile.

"Can you promise me something, Nick?" Jess asked.

"Anything." His eyes were unwavering.

"Promise me you'll always bother trying with me." She looked so small and vulnerable sitting there with her eyes shining with tears.

"I will always bother trying with you, Jess. I promise."

"Thank you, Nick," she replied with the beginnings of a smile.

"Can I ask for a favor?" Nick asked, also beginning to smile.

"Sure."

"Can I go to Spencer's house tomorrow and get your stuff back? That butt hole will probably sell it or something if it's there too long."

"I don't know, Nick," Jess said, breaking eye contact. "I'm not sure I can go through with it."

"You can keep it all at my place," he said calmly. "I've got, like, nothing in my bedroom to speak of so you can bung it there until you get your own place sorted. With Caroline, getting my stuff back and cutting ties was the only way I could start moving on."

Jess chewed her lip thoughtfully.

"You don't have to come if you don't want to," Nick tried, moving one hand to her chin to encourage her to look into his eyes again. She did and was surprised by his determination.

"Ok, but take CeCe with you. She scares the crap out of him." Jess laughed, swiping the tears out of her eyes.


	9. Chapter 9

**A bit of filth snuck up on me this chapter. You have been warned! :)**

Chapter 9

After an emotional sojourn in the car, the pair were a little quiet during dinner. They were, truth be told, wrapped up in their thoughts about their respective exes.

"I don't want you to take this the wrong way," Jess broached a little nervously, "but I'm thinking about Spencer quite a lot at the moment."

Nick felt a pang of jealousy that this other man clearly had a hold on Jess, but quickly squashed it.

"Hey, I think it's part of our healing process, ya know," he told her, his eyes glittering with sincerity. "It's what we need to do to move on."

"I guess," Jess said, looking down a little glumly. "I just can't seem to get the fact that he cheated on me out of my head. I feel stupid."

"Hey, hey, hey," Nick said quickly but softly. "You aren't stupid. He's the idiot that threw away the greatest woman I've ever met."

Jess looked up with a teary smile, just in time to see his cheeks blaze. "You really mean that, don't you."

"I really, actually do," he responded with a wry chuckle. "I've never been the cheating kind. I just don't get it."

"Me neither," Jess said, with a fiery blaze in her eyes. "If he wasn't in love with me enough to not sleep with some floozy, then why didn't he just break up with me?"

"Beats me," Nick replied, enjoying the flash of anger. She was so good and sweet that seeing this side of her shot a little thrill through him.

Their dinner arrived and they were both silent for a few moments, savoring the rich, tangy barbecue flavor. Nick admired how Jess did everything with absolute gusto. She would throw herself into drinking a drink or singing a song. In this case, she was ripping into her dinner as if she had been on a week long fast.

"Man, this is good!" Jess declared with a smile. She jabbed a half-chewed rib in his direction. "I can't believe _anyone_ could not like barbecue."

"I should've known we were doomed," Nick said with a dark laugh. "She didn't like barbecue, she didn't like beer or drinking really, she didn't even like Schmidt. I mean, he's a douche, but he's _my _douche, ya know?"

Jess smiled at him. He was so loyal to his friends and there was an awful lot of love there. He spoke about them in such nice ways, even when saying how much they irritated him, it was like they were his family. She hoped to inspire that in his voice one day.

"Spencer hated Cece. She was everything that he was against." Jess paused before lowering her voice conspiratorially. "Plus she totally called him on all his bullshit."

Nick guffawed. "Is he, like, a vegetarian apart from chicken and fish?"

Jess grinned. "I never got that! He was worse. A vegan, apart from bacon sandwiches. He thought I didn't know, but I could smell it on him. When someone eats beans and pulses all the time, they don't smell like us meat eaters, so you _know_ when they eat meat."

They both laughed until they were a bit breathless. They couldn't deny that it felt good to air out some of the secrets that you hold on to when you've been in a relationship for so long. It was really cathartic and allowed them to start to feel normal again. There was a definite stamp on them both from their relationships but it had started to fade as they grew closer.

They took their time over dinner, talking a lot, laughing a lot and eating an incredible amount. They decided that they would split a dessert together, Jess's choice, and ended up with two spoons in an enormous sundae that dripped with chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

"Ooooooooh," Jess squealed as it arrived, clapping her hands together with glee. "Can I have the cherry please, Nick?" She shot him the biggest puppy-dog eyes and dropped her bottom lip.

"Course you can, ya mook," he said with a grin. "I ate so many of those damn cherries when I started working at the bar that I made myself sick. I can't look 'em in the eye anymore."

Jess gave him a peck on the cheek and picked the bright reddish-pink cherry up by it's luminous stalk. She popped it in her mouth with glee and chewed with wide eyes. Nick couldn't help himself. He scooped some cream on his finger and put it on the end of Jess's nose. She started to giggle uncontrollably.

Nick pinged Jess a smirk and, quick as a flash, he licked the cream off her nose. It made her giggle even more. She grabbed him and drew him in for a long and lingering kiss.

They quickly finished up their dessert and paid their bill, a new sense of urgency rising in them both. The mood had changed quickly from light and casual with gentle flirtation to being electrically charged. They both felt slightly incredulous that a little bit of physical contact could rev them both up so much.

The drive home was even worse. They could barely keep their hands off each other for long enough to drive safely. Nick could feel a warm longing spreading through his lower stomach. Jess kissed his neck, nibbled the earlobe she could reach and ran her fingers through the sparse chest hair that peeked out of the open collar of his shirt.

"Pull over, Nick," Jess breathed. Her voice was urgent and full of desire. Nick almost crashed the car then and there.

"P-pull over?"

"Now, Nick. I can't wait until we get home."

That was all Nick needed to hear. He swung the car off the road, heading into the relative privacy of a big, dark and bushy area. It wasn't a busy road, so the traffic was minimal there. As soon as the car had stopped moving, the pair grabbed each other hungrily. Their lips crashed together roughly, right on the line between pleasure and pain. They began to kiss each other desperately, their breathing coming in ragged bursts.

Jess pulled herself over the centre console, straddling Nick and kissing him again. He reached down and pulled the lever to move the seat back, pushing it as far as it would go, wanting to get as much space as he could. It was still intoxicatingly close and confined.

Within a few moments, they had pulled and loosened as much clothing as was necessary to get their skin touching in the right places. Nick had opened Jess's blouse and ran his rough hands across her stomach. She gasped and moaned into his mouth as they kissed.

Jess shifted position so that she could undo his belt and unbutton his jeans. She delved her small hand inside to find the prize that she sought. She grinned and licked her lips in anticipation. He felt so warm and firm in his hand.

Nick gasped as her cool hand touched him. He hitched her skirt up to her waist and pulled her in towards him. He steered her with hands placed firmly on her hips. Time seemed to slow down for a moment with sheer anticipation. They both shook slightly, gasping in unison as Nick firmly grabbed and pushed her underwear to the side and filled her completely.

After a long and lingering kiss, the urgency returned to them both. They grabbed each other everywhere they could reach in the cramped confines of the car. They were moving together quickly, both grunting and sweating with the effort. It was pure and animalistic and they both couldn't form a coherent thought between themselves.

As the waves of pleasure within Jess got to tipping point, she grabbed Nick around his back and pulled him in close to her. As every muscle in her body tensed around him in a glorious burst of light and pleasure, she cried out and gave him a tight and shaky kiss.

Nick brought his hands up into her hair and grabbed a handful, pulling it sharply but not too roughly. As lost in passion as he was, he wouldn't want to hurt her. As he did this, he felt her grab him tight again and her body arched and shuddered in a second, quite unexpected, climax.

She managed to murmur a shaky, "Wow."

Nick grinned as he kissed her, deep and hard. He panted, having just about managed to keep himself from going over the edge while he felt and watched her peak. He pulled her hips again, firmly guiding her to his rhythm. She looked at him with unfocussed eyes that sparkled with as much mischief as she could muster.

She moved his hands to her upper boobs, liking the secure feeling of his warmth against her, constricting her just enough. She moved a little faster than the rhythm that he had dictated. She rotated her hips in small circles as she thrust against him, making him give a low, guttural moan of absolute pleasure.

"I won't last long like this, Jess," he said in a ragged whisper.

"I don't care," she said, her voice still a little shaky. "I need you, Nick."

Her words and movements together sent him flying over the edge. As his body bucked and arched towards her, he pulled her down onto him as hard as he could, sending her over the edge with him.

They both were lost in the moment, surrounded by shooting stars in a universe containing just the two of them. As their breathing began to slow a little, the car started to reappear around them followed by the rest of the world. Nick had his arms wrapped around Jess, who rested her head on his shoulder and gently stroked the hair at the nape of his neck with her fingertips.

"You're amazing, Jess," Nick breathed in her ear. "You somehow manage to be unbelievably hot as well as smart, funny and absolutely incredible in bed."

Jess responded simply, just giving a moan of satisfaction and snuggling in closer to his chest. She listened to his heartbeat as it pounded in his chest, waiting and listening as it calmed down a little.

"Can you believe we just did that?" Jess said with a sated chuckle. "That was crazy!"

Nick gave a gentle chuckle which reverberated through his chest, making Jess's body tingle where it touched him.

"It was your idea, Jess. Who am I to say no to your urgent requests?"

Jess felt her cheeks grow hot. He spotted this out of the corner of his eye and hooked her chin with his finger, bringing it up gently to his lips. He kissed her with a slow-burning, gentle passion. As he broke away, his dark eyes bored into hers.

"Don't you dare be embarrassed," he told her firmly. "That was hot as all hell. You really know how to get me worked up!"

She chuckled softly, feeling the flames licking her face start to dampen. "Really?"

Nick wanted so badly to make her feel better. She had a wild side that she was partly scared of and partly embarrassed about. He wanted to bring that out, not just for her, but for him too.

"Yep, really," he said plaintively. "I nearly crashed the damn car when you told me to pull over. Was I too rough with you?" He was genuinely a little worried.

"Absolutely not," Jess said quickly. "Talking of hot as hell, what was the hair pulling about?"

It was Nick's turn to blush. "You have all that hair and caveman Nick took over for a minute. He seemed to think you'd like it."

"Caveman Nick is surprisingly wise," Jess said, with a relieved belly laugh.

Her deep laugh made Nick's hips buck unexpectedly. Their eyebrows went up together as they realized that they were still rather intimately joined. They kissed again, this time long and lingering, before they disengaged.

"Yeah, my legs are shaking too much to drive for a minute," Nick said matter-of-factly. "We're just gonna have to straighten ourselves out and hold hands for a few minutes until I get my senses back."

Jess giggled and beamed at him. She could get used to his adoration and honestly very easily, she decided.

**Just wanted to say thanks for all the reviews so far, guys. :) I hope you're enjoying reading it as much as I'm enjoying writing it. I try to submit something every day, so more updates and new stories soon! xx**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Nick and Jess drove home in a comfortable silence. Nick held her hand gently and stroked it with his thumb, grinning from ear to ear.

Jess looked at him sideways, her smile matching his. She had never been with someone who just made her feel at ease like he did. It felt like they were jigsaw puzzle pieces that, although they had their own unique shapes, fit together perfectly.

They pulled up near Nick's apartment building and went inside, still holding hands. They opened the door and were greeted by Nick's three roommates. Nick introduced Jess to them all properly, this time, and they sat together drinking and chatting comfortably.

The three men could see how happy she made Nick and were naturally accepting of her quirkiness because of it. None of them were particularly fond of Caroline, especially not Schmidt with whom she shared a mutual hatred. This girl seemed to be a bright, sunny breath of fresh air for Nick which could be just what he needed.

That didn't mean, of course, that they couldn't tease them both just a little bit.

"You look very pleased with yourself, Nicholas," Schmidt said, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

"I'm stuffed to the eyeballs with barbecue, sat next to a beautiful woman, Schmidt. What's not to be happy about?"

Jess's cheeks colored slightly. She couldn't help but grin bashfully as he squeezed her hand.

"Admit it, you two had sex tonight. I can see it written all over your filthy faces."

"Come on, man," Winston interrupted. "You should know Nick doesn't have enough game for that."

"And this lovely lady isn't easily tempted, I bet," Coach interjected.

Nick glared at them all in turn. "I know your game, guys. I'm sayin' nothin'."

After a few minutes of banter, Nick took Jess to his bedroom. As much as he liked his friends, he had been looking forward to time with her all week. Jess plopped down on his bed and took some time to look around at his room.

There were posters of various bands, some rather old, faded and dog-eared; some fairly recent. They were all not quite to her taste, but were all bands she had heard of and listened to on occasion. Her eyes then fell on a beaten up laptop, which sat on top of a thick wad of paper.

"What's with the paper, Nick?"

Nick's cheeks flushed. "It's nothing."

"Pretty thick and papery for nothing..." she continued expectantly.

"I'm halfway through writing a zombie novel," he told her in a rushed jumble. "I'm definitely not happy with it yet, but I'm still thinking about where I want to go with it."

Jess broke out into a smile. "That's awesome! I tried to write a book for kids, but it ended up a little bit too weird. I'm a teacher, not a writer, it seems!"

Nick chuckled, feeling comfortable again.

"I just do it to keep my brain a little bit active," he said quietly. "The bar isn't all that challenging, being totally honest with you." He gave her a self deprecating smile.

"Did you always want to be a bartender?"

"Oh god, no," he said quickly. His eyes lit up animatedly as he spoke. "I was going to be a lawyer, but one day I just woke up and realized that, not only did I hate lawyers, but I also didn't like what lawyers did. A shame it took until my final year of law school, but hey."

Jess digested the information with an open and encouraging smile. She was hoping that he would go on a bit. He seemed to open up more if you just stayed silent and let his thoughts battle each other.

"I took the job at the bar to pay the bills and just kinda got stuck there," he said, his eyes misting over slightly as he pushed his brain to recall. "I quite like it though. It's basic and simple, which I find appealing."

"You seem pretty good at it too," Jess said, squeezing his knee. "I'm pretty lucky. I always knew I wanted to be a teacher, so that made that decision pretty easy. I always used to play schools when I was a kid."

"I wish I had that," Nick told her, looking at her intensely. "I wish I knew what I wanted to do. I feel like I'm stuck in this holding pattern. I mean, I've been a bartender too long so I don't know what other job I'll get, plus I don't have experience. That means, bam, bartender for life."

"Not necessarily," Jess said softly. "My uncle used to be a molecular biologist and he retrained to be a computer programmer when computers started to get big."

Nick pondered on that for a moment. "But how do I know what I want to do?"

"What do you like doing? Like, what's your favorite part about working in a bar?"

"I guess it's the rush you get from the actual achievement of getting the work done. So maybe the service part of it?"

"So you like doing things for people. That's a start. What else can you do apart from bar work and writing zombie novels?"

Nick thought deeply for a moment, his forehead crinkling intensely and his eyes growing dark and stormy. He steepled his fingers and took a deep breath.

"I always wanted to make things," he said slowly. "Like a carpenter or something like that. But it takes years to learn. I'm too old to start something like that."

"You can do anything, Nick," Jess said in her most reassuring tone. "You're still young and you don't have any ties, so ,heck, go get your dream."

"I'd be so poor for so long," he said softly, a tone of defeat in his voice.

"Who cares if you're poor if you're happy?" she said brightly. "Teaching isn't exactly a glamorous, highly paid job. I do it because I love it and I'm just happy that it pays the bills."

"All anyone ever tells me is to go back to school and go be a lawyer," Nick said, looking into her eyes with intensity. "You are actually the first person who ever asked me what would make me happy. Thank you, Jess. I mean that."

Jess kissed him long and hard, trying to pour her affection for him into the touch. She touched the back of his neck tenderly.

"I'm supposed to be thanking you, Jess," he said, smiling broadly.

"Well, get on and start thanking me, Miller," she said with a laugh.

Nick bundled into her for a long and passionate kiss, pulling her on top of him and squeezing her tightly.

XxxxxX

The following morning, they got up together and wandered into the kitchen for breakfast. She had brought a thin, pink dressing gown with her that she threw on over the most adorable pajamas that Nick had ever seen. He had no idea how an outfit like that could be so hot, but somehow she managed it.

They made coffee and toasted bagels together in such a synchronized fashion that you might think that they had been together for years. They chatted the whole time, laughing and talking over their plans for the day.

They quickly showered and dressed after their breakfast was done, rounded up Schmidt and picked up CeCe to go and play mini-golf.

CeCe got into Nick's beaten up car and he went to introduce her to Schmidt, but was interrupted.

"Oh my god, YOU!" CeCe said to Schmidt, her eyes flashing.

"That's right, baby, the man of your dreams," Schmidt replied in his polished patter.

"You're the sleaze who wouldn't stop trying to paw me at the party last Saturday." She shot him her most deadly, withering glare.

Schmidt's face fell as a dim recollection passed through him. His face fell into a shocked, slack jawed semi-frown.

"At least you made him quiet," Nick laughed. "We'll have to keep you around, CeCe."

"You touch me today, Schmidt," CeCe said threateningly, jabbing a finger towards him, "and I will end you. I mean it."

"I had a stressful night and drank a lot. I apologize for my behavior."

"Damn right you do."

"I will be the perfect gentleman today, I promise you."

"You don't need to promise," CeCe hissed. "You just need to leave me alone otherwise your testicles will no longer be attached to your body."

"Well, this is a little awkwaaaard," Jess sang to nobody in particular.

"Strictly no bloodshed in Miller-Day rules mini-golf," Nick said lightly, trying to diffuse the situation.

They arrived at the mini-golf course shortly after. Once the rules had been explained and they had started playing, Schmidt and CeCe both started to laugh and relax and perhaps not hate each other quite so completely.

They were all neck and neck, right up until the final hole. It was a long series off slaloms made out of concrete, ending in what looked like a mole hill with the cup right in the middle of it. CeCe lined up her shot and belted it as hard as she could. Much to everyone's surprise, it flew through the course and went into the hole neatly, almost as though it was laser guided.

Being a hole in one, the other three players had to do a victory dance around her. They chose the sprinkler and all started waving their arms wildly in a circle around CeCe.

Nobody managed to beat her, so as the final scores were tallied and she was declared the winner by a clear margin, she squealed and jumped up and down.

"Suck it, losers," CeCe grinned.

"Graceful winner, there Cees," Jess said with a giggle.

XxxxX

In the car on the way home, they talked about getting Jess's stuff back from Spencer. Between them, they saw her reluctance and ultimately Nick decided not to push her too hard. He made sure that he told her that, once she was ready, he and the boys had her back.

She really appreciated it, but couldn't quite find the words to say it.

They dropped CeCe off at her apartment and then went on to Nick and Schmidt's, dropping Schmidt off there. Nick didn't get out of the car, so Jess followed suit. Nick waved goodbye to his friend and drove away.

"Where we off to, Nick?" Jess asked. She was enjoying his spontaneity, not for the first time,

"You said you didn't want to go get your old stuff and you've not got much at CeCe's," he said as though that was sufficient explanation.

"I did say that," Jess said slowly. "So you're taking me where now?"

Nick laughed and glanced over at Jess with a smile. "We're gonna go shopping and get you a few things. You can stick 'em at mine if ya like."

Jess grinned. It felt like quite a big step so early on, but it really felt right. It would take the guesswork out of staying over at his place.

"I'd like that, actually," Jess smiled. "But no wearing my stuff when I'm not there."

"You spoil all my fun, Jess. I think I'd look good in one of your incredibly short, incredibly hot skirts."

"I have no doubt that it would show off your legs," Jess told him with mock seriousness. "However, I'm not sure Winston or Coach would appreciate it. Schmidt I'm not too sure about."

"Yeah, I think he'd like an eyeful," Nick chortled.

"Thanks, Nick," Jess said, needing to be serious for a moment. "This is really sweet and I'm really touched that you'd do this for me."

"I just like spending time with ya," Nick said plaintively. "Having stuff at my place would make you keep coming back, so it's self-serving really."

Jess just smiled in reply and looked out the window, enjoying the sunshine on her face.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The weekend came and went in the blink of an eye. Before Nick and Jess knew it, Monday morning had reared its ugly head. Jess stayed over at Nick's right up until the minute that she had to leave for work and both mused silently that they could get used to that quite easily.

Jess wore a bright yellow sundress with a shiny navy blue belt that Nick had bought her over the weekend. Nick thought it suited her sunny disposition rather well and smiled as she shrugged on her navy blue cardigan.

"I wish I had my navy blue and yellow shoes. They'd be perfect for this outfit," Jess said a little sadly. "I never got to wear them as I never had a dress to match until now. I was holding out!"

Nick hugged her and gave a light laugh and brushed his lips over hers. She hugged him back tightly and they kissed more deeply as she skipped out the door to go to work. She had arranged to go back to Nick's straight from work as he had the day off from the bar.

After she had left, Nick sat on the couch sipping his coffee. He had been toying with an idea all weekend, but hadn't quite worked out if he should go for it or not. He was worried that Jess would be upset, but he could also see that she might be delighted. Although he felt that he knew her well, this was one of the things that he couldn't predict her reaction to.

He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. He decided that his bold action, while it might upset her, could be exactly the thing that she needed, but didn't quite know that she needed it. He nodded to himself and decided that he would go for it.

Nick dressed quickly and left the apartment. He hopped in his car and drove to the other side of town, battling with himself the whole way. He almost talked himself out of it by the time he arrived, but some of Jess's words kept popping into his head and putting him back on to the mission at hand.

He got out of his car and walked up to the front door of a small, white bungalow. He noticed the pretty blue pots outside the front door and shook his head as he saw that the plants inside were almost dead. He scowled, full of renewed determination, and knocked on the door.

A lean, tall man with long blond hair in a messy ponytail opened the door. He had a rather vacant expression, which made Nick take an immediate dislike to him.

"You must be Spencer," Nick said in his gruffest voice. His eyes danced with fire.

"Guilty," Spencer replied languidly. "Whatever you're selling, I'm not interested."

Nick laughed darkly. It was right on the line of being dangerous, which made Spencer immediately uncomfortable.

"I'm not selling anything, buddy," Nick said. Somehow he managed to make it sound like a threat. "I've just come to collect Jess's stuff."

"Oh, Jess!" Spencer said, looking uncomfortable. "Is she in the car? I wanted to speak to her."

"She's at work," Nick replied with a withering stare. "Just go get her stuff. I'll help."

Spencer didn't seem to know what to do, so he hopped awkwardly from foot to foot.

"Who are you, anyway?" Spencer asked huffily.

"The guy who's come for Jess's stuff," Nick said firmly.

Spencer felt intimidated by this man. He fixed Spencer with such an unwavering stare, which bored straight into his inner being, that he squirmed.

"Well, I should check with Jess that you are who you say that you are."

"I'd like to see how that conversation would go," Nick retorted. "Just fork it over."

Spencer looked at Nick and couldn't match his determination. He paused for a few moments and then moved aside to let him in.

The house was an absolute mess. This guy obviously had left Jess to do the lion's share of the housework. The more Nick saw, the more intensely he disliked Spencer. He could see that all of Jess's things were slung around in a random fashion with no regard for them. There were plants everywhere on the brink of death.

"I take it these... plants... are Jess's," Nick demanded.

"Y-yes," Spencer admitted sheepishly. At least, Nick thought, he had the decency to look ashamed.

"Ya couldn't sling a cup of water their way? Seriously, man. She cares about this kinda thing."

Spencer didn't reply. He decided that the situation was stressing him out too much and went to the couch and sat down dejectedly. Nick rolled his eyes.

"Just take her stuff," Spencer said quietly. "I'm not going to get in your way."

Nick gave a short snort of derision before collecting up the house plants and depositing them by the door. He then stalked around the living room and collected clothes and anything that looked like it belonged to a woman. He went into the bedroom and was horrified to see that Jess's pretty dresses had been knocked unceremoniously on to the floor. He spotted a couple of large suitcases peeking out of a closet.

As Nick collected and folded the array of colorful outfits, he placed them into the suitcases with a gentle reverence. He couldn't imagine how Spencer could have such low regard for her beautiful things. He went through the drawers, looked under the bed and emptied the night stand. He found jewelry and pictures her class had drawn her, as well as her diary and some well-read, dog eared books.

Wheeling the suitcases to the door, Nick shot Spencer an angry glare. He located some boxes and proceeded to the bathroom, collecting up anything that looked girly. By that point, he didn't care whether he was taking Spencer's things. He went to the kitchen and grabbed everything that he didn't understand - he figured that would be the easiest way to know whether it was hers or not.

Nick knew it wasn't everything, but it was most things and that would be enough to help Jess to take her next step to freedom from this idiot. Leaving the front door wide open, Nick loaded the car. It took a few trips and made him sweat profusely, but his determination made him fast and efficient.

"I'm almost finished," Nick announced. Spencer barely moved his head in response. That irked Nick greatly.

"Tell Jess I didn't mean to," Spencer muttered.

"No deal," Nick said harshly. "You cheated on her and broke her heart. Not only did you mean to, you did it willfully. You made the biggest mistake of your life cheating on that wonderful woman and, to be honest, you deserve to feel like a complete asshole."

Spencer looked up from his seat on the couch and his mouth dropped open. He had never been spoken to so bluntly.

"I'm taking the damn TV," Nick continued, his eyes flashing. "I know Jess paid for it and damnit you're not having it."

Nick unplugged the TV and DVD player swiftly and carried them towards the door.

"I expect you to look around and find anything of hers. CeCe will be coming round at the weekend to collect it and I'll be coming with her, so make sure you've done it properly. It's the least you can do."

Nick fixed Spencer with a glare. Spencer got up and followed Nick to the front door. He didn't know what to say, so he stayed silent. Nick was pretty happy about that.

He had almost run out of space in his car, so he rejigged it slightly to accommodate the television. He walked back over to the bright blue pots and grabbed them. He put them on the passenger seat and drove away. He had a nervous anticipation burning in his stomach as he drove.

Once Nick had made several trips from the car up to his bedroom with Jess's belongings, he sat down on his bed and surveyed his work. He'd impulsively grabbed all her stuff and hadn't really thought much further than that. His forehead wrinkled in thought.

After a few minutes, Nick began working like a man possessed. He took the plants to the living room and spread some newspaper across the dining table. He arranged the plants in the beams of sunshine that filled the loft from the giant windows and then proceeded to water them all with jug after jug of water.

After the plants looked a bit wetter and happier, he started sorting through her clothes. He took everything that could be washed and piled it up into convenient loads. He started the first load and went back to his bedroom to look at the remainder.

He hated that her lovely clothes were crumpled and smelled of her hippy ex-boyfriend. He wanted to make sure that she came home to fresh, beautiful clothes that made her smile.

He dashed back to the car with an armful of Jess's fancier dresses which needed to be dry cleaned. He dropped them off, paying extra for them to be done before the end of the day, then headed to a small store that he knew would have the final things that he wanted to finish off his mission.

The store was an old family-run hardware store that had a variety of things you couldn't buy elsewhere stashed in the dark nooks and crannies of shelves. He picked up a clothes rail, a small metal shoe rack and a rather ornate basket which had a blue ribbon weaved into it. He smiled for the first time since he had started his task and felt a bubble of excitement. He started to feel sure that Jess would at least appreciate the sentiment.

He hurried home and put his purchases in his bedroom. He went to the laundry room and swapped the recently finished load of washing into the dryer, putting the second pile of laundry into the washer.

Nick put together the shoe rack first, arranging her tiny, colorful and sometimes sparkly shoes on it. He put it in the corner of his room, deciding with a smile that it could be the bright 'Jess' area of his room if she wanted it to be. He made up the clothes rail and positioned it in the corner, grinning to himself.

Nick transferred the toiletries from the cardboard box into the basket in what he thought was quite a stylish arrangement. He put that on the edge of the desk, right next to the Jess area. He stacked her books, pictures and diary neatly next to it.

Picking up the final box, which was full of kitchen items, Nick headed out of his bedroom and into the kitchen. He washed each and every item and dried it thoroughly. He grabbed a plastic crate from his bedroom, which had previously held his old attempts at stories, and cleaned it. He put all the freshly cleaned items into the crate and returned that to the Jess corner.

Nick spent the afternoon washing and drying Jess's clothes, hanging them up on the rail as he finished. Anything that didn't need hanging was put into the nicer of the two suitcases neatly. He surveyed the room with satisfaction, enjoying the pleasant smell of so much fresh laundry.

He ran out and grabbed the dry cleaning just before the store closed, bringing them home and hanging them in their plastic wrappings on to the rail. He knew Jess would be back very soon, so he decided to go make himself a cup of coffee and her a cup of tea. His stomach filled with butterflies of anticipation.

As Nick pulled the tea bag from the cup, Jess knocked timidly on the door. She looked a little frazzled and weary and gave him an extremely grateful hug before they sat together on the couch. Nick listened intently as Jess told him about her day. He smiled and squeezed her knee, enjoying the funny stories that she told him.

"You've not told me what you've been up to today, Nick," Jess said, looking a brighter than she had when she had arrived. She obviously needed a drink and relaxation.

"Come see," Nick said with a smile, leading her by the hand to his bedroom.

As Nick turned on the light, Jess gasped. It took her a moment to fully recognise what she was seeing before her.

"What did you do?" Jess asked, tears brimming in her eyes.

Nick felt a pang of nausea and worry stabbing at his stomach. _In for a penny,_ he thought bleakly.

"It pissed me off that you couldn't wear what you wanted or have your stuff near you," he said, examining the reaction on her face. She wasn't expressing anything facially. He swallowed at a lump in his throat.

"OK," she said meekly.

"So I went to your old place and got your stuff. I got as much as I could and brought it back here. He had thrown your clothes on the floor like they were trash and I couldn't stand it so I washed them or dry cleaned them." The words tumbled out in a hurry. He pointed at the clothes rail.

He explained everything he had done that day and watched her face for any minute movement but couldn't see anything. He could feel the bile rising in his throat.

"The main thing I wanted to do was save your plants. He hadn't watered them and they were nearly dead and I hated that. They're all on the dining table so they get the sun and I watered them as nicely as I could."

Jess remained unreadable.

"I'm sorry, Jess," Nick said with a pleading note in his voice. "I just wanted to do something nice."

Jess blinked a few times and fat tears rolled down her face and splashed on to the floor. Nick covered the space between them faster than he had thought possible and grabbed her hands. He ducked down to catch her eye and took a shaky breath to speak again. He felt the color drain from his cheeks.

"Nice?" she whispered. She cleared her throat and blinked again.

"I'm so sorry, Je-"

"God, don't be sorry, Nick," Jess said in a steadier voice. "That is the single sweetest, nicest and most thoughtful thing anyone has ever done."

Nick's body flooded with relief. He gathered her up in a hug and squeezed her tightly.

"Seriously," she continued, pulling back to look him in the eye, "that's just so beyond wonderful. Thank you so much!"

Nick brought his thumbs up to her face and wiped the tears away from her cheeks. He kissed her warmly and hugged her again. She grabbed his hand and ran to her plants in the other room, grinning at him the whole way there.


	12. Chapter 12

**A few M rated bits in here. You guys are clearly making me filthy! :) P.S. Thank you for the lovely reviews! You're great! xx**

Chapter 12

Jess was so taken aback by what Nick had done for her, by going to Spencer and getting her belongings. He had done it all so nicely and so thoroughly, putting so much thought into it. It was more than Spencer had done for her in the whole time that they had been together. He had really put himself out there and taken a bit of a risk and her heart pounded as she went over it in her head.

They ate dinner on the couch together, seeing as the dining table was practically creaking under the weight of so many of her plants. Jess couldn't stop smiling at him.

"What?" Nick asked, smiling as he looked askance at her.

"You have absolutely blown me away, Nick," Jess said with immense sincerity.

"I just thought it would do ya good to get your stuff back," he told her, a little embarrassed. "I know I'd've liked to get my stuff back from Caroline without having to talk to her or see her."

Jess chuckled ruefully. "It's more than that, Nick. You really are something special."

"I can't help it," he replied with sparkling eyes. "You're the best thing that's happened to me in a really long time."

Jess couldn't help but break out into a massive smile. She felt her heart constrict as waves of gratitude and happiness washed through her. She could almost feel herself falling for him.

"I know it's a bit soon," Jess said, chewing her lip nervously, "but I can feel you making your way into my heart. I know our relationship is going to be amazing."

Nick looked stunned and happy. He hadn't expected her to say that, by any stretch of the imagination. She wanted to tell him how she was feeling; he had put himself out there and she wanted to reciprocate.

"I'm terrible at talking about how I feel," Nick said plaintively, spreading his hands out wide. "But for you, I want to be better." He took a deep breath and gulped a little.

Jess waited patiently, stroking his hand gently. She could feel her heart fluttering in her chest.

"Since I met you," he continued, so quietly she could only just hear him, "I have felt like you've been collecting up all the broken pieces of my heart and holding them in your hands. Over the last couple of days, you've squished them all back together again and warmed it up. It's a bit scarred and bruised, but for the first time in a long time I feel like it's beating again and that's because of you."

The words hung in the air while Jess digested them, open mouthed. He had told her that he was bad at expressing his feelings and she had just assumed that it was because he couldn't find the right words, which was what she struggled with. She was gobsmacked to discover that she was wrong. He knew the words, but he had always been too broken to say them. It felt like a moment of clarity; it made her understand him so much better.

Neither of them spoke. They looked at each other, their eyes brimming over with emotions that neither could express at that point. Jess took him by the hand and stood up, leaving their dinner forgotten as she led him to the bedroom wordlessly. Their eyes were locked together in an intense stare.

Nick kicked the door closed behind them and allowed himself to be led to the bed. His heart pounded inside his chest and he reveled in the feeling. He had meant every word of what he had said to her moments before.

Jess gave Nick a gentle push so that he sat down. She straddled his lap and kissed him gently and tenderly, hugging him tightly and trying to get as much of her body in contact with his as possible. She felt her skin grow warm and start to tingle softly as they kissed. Nick wrapped his arms around her in response, spreading his hands across her back.

They lost themselves in their kisses, hearts pounding together. Without really noticing, they stripped their clothes off. They kissed and kissed, ending up with Nick sitting upright with his back against the headboard, legs crossed and Jess facing him in his lap with her legs wrapped tightly around his waist.

They drank in the sight and feel of each others' naked bodies, not able to stop the kisses from flowing between them. Jess gasped as Nick adjusted their positions to slide himself inside her. They moved together slowly, squeezing each other with every smooth movement.

Nick placed a warm hand firmly on the hollow of her chest, just above and between her breasts. Jess leaned in against it, enjoying how safe and relaxed it made her feel. He placed his other hand on the small of her back, which increased the pressure between her chest and his hand a little to make her feel even safer, as if he surrounded her with his warmth. He used the hand on her back to move her hips towards his, which pushed him deeper inside her.

As they moved, she could feel a warm pleasure spreading low in her abdomen. It was building slowly, sending waves of delight coursing through her body. Their mouths joined, sharing warm languid kisses.

Neither of them had any concept of time passing. They felt almost as though they had been in that position for a long and happy lifetime. Jess could feel her legs start to shake and twitch slightly as she felt the warmth inside her spreading further outwards.

They carried on slowly, maintaining the same pace. Jess was breathing hard and heavy as she felt her body vibrating with pleasure. Nick could feel that she was right on the edge and spread the fingers on the hand that still remained on her chest. He squeezed her a little tighter into him, and felt a flutter in his chest as he watched her eyes roll back into her head.

She gave a long, low moan of enjoyment as wave after wave of intense pleasure crashed within her. Her back arched, her toes curled and her fingers clenched instinctively in his hair. The hairs on the back of Nick's neck stood on end as he felt her tighten around him.

He kissed her neck and ran his lips up to her earlobe, which he nibbled. He could feel himself heading inexorably towards his moment of release. He noted with a smile that she was still in the throes of hers; she was still moaning and tight around him. It was the longest orgasm that he had ever experienced and it made his heart surge.

He carried on rocking gently with her, kissing and squeezing her until he felt her fingers unclench and the rest of her release him gently. He had to use every ounce of his self control to hold himself together until she had finished. As soon as her bright blue eyes opened and she looked at him shakily and unfocused, but smiling broadly, he felt himself tip over the edge.

Being so tangled up with her, when he climaxed his hips bucked wildly and he dug his fingers into her soft skin. Jess kissed him deeply and passionately, opening her eyes for a peek as his eyes took their turn to roll back into his head.

Jess could feel every millimeter of his skin against her, electricity passing between them. Nick felt as though he had left his body in that long, pleasurable moment and as his eyes opened and his fingers released, he felt a long, satisfied sigh pass between his lips.

Nick grinned at Jess. She could feel his hands shaking where they still rested on her back and chest. Jess felt some residual waves of pleasure meandering through her body. She was quite sure that her legs didn't work at that point and laughed breathlessly.

"Damn, Jess," Nick murmured, his voice raw and rough. "I think you broke me. I honestly think I won't be able to move."

"Come on," Jess replied with a satisfied sparkle in her voice. "I think you probably broke me first. I've never had an orgasm like that one..." She trailed off, looking off into the mid-distance as she remembered.

Nick couldn't help but grin. Their bodies seemed to be made for each other. Jess's eyes flicked back to his and she kissed him again.

"How did you know to put your hand on my chest?"

"It just..." he thought for a beat. "It just felt right. I wanted it there and it seemed like you did too."

"It was so incredible," Jess enthused in a low voice. "Just... intense."

Nick looked over at his clock and his eyes widened. Jess saw and followed his gaze. Her jaw dropped a little and she gave a giggle.

"I'm reading that right, right?" Nick laughed.

"We've been in here about an hour and a half! You're quite a surprise, Mister Miller."

"It's not always about losing yourself in a hard, fast moment of passion," Nick told her sagely. "Sometimes you just want to be _with _someone in the most incredible way possible." He felt his cheeks flush. These words from his heart kept slipping out without him realizing.

Jess stroked his stubbly face, scratching the hairs delicately with her nails. "You just keep on amazing me. I thought you were this grumpy, hot, smart guy who was funny in a sarcastic kind of way. It turns out you're that, plus you are caring, kind, amazing in bed and hot."

"You already said hot," Nick said, his cheeks on fire. He didn't know how to respond to her. She was opening him up and laying him out there and he could actually feel her making him a better man.

"Well," she replied, her eyes sparkling, "you are really hot!"

Nick smiled at her, his eyes crinkling. He grabbed her tightly around her waist, making her squeal, and threw her down on the bed next to him. He moved downwards to lay down next to her and they immediately tangled their limbs together.

"You're not so shabby yourself, Day," he grinned.

"Why thank you, kind sir," Jess replied in a southern drawl.

"This could be the incredible sex talking, but I feel like I'm the luckiest damn guy in the world." He tried to look her in the eye, but he couldn't quite manage it as he had the tiny voice of worry in his head saying that pointing out how lucky he was would make her realize and leave.

"I'm gonna fall for you hard, Miller," Jess said, snagging his chin with her finger to make him look at her to see her sincerity. "You're the whole package."

Nick's face lit up with a look of pure and absolute delight. Neither of them needed to say anything further, so they both lay in comfortable silence. They stroked each others' skin softly and held each other tight, wrapped so closely together that you could barely tell where one person ended and the other began.

Jess could hear Schmidt out in the dining area, talking shrilly with Winston about the "table-top topiary" and stomping around huffily. Jess smirked and caught Nick's eye.

"I guess I should go tell him they're my plants," she said softly.

"Maybe in five more minutes," Nick said with a happy grin. "This is so damn comfortable."

"Yeah," Jess said, smiling quietly. "Plus, I think between the shaky legs and the grin that we can't wipe off, we'd be utterly insufferable. I mean, great sex isn't something to rub in peoples faces you know."

Nick laughed, low and incredibly sexily in Jess's opinion. "Despite the ego boost of showing everyone my sexual prowess by displaying how much I broke you, I don't think I could take the backlash."

"Wise man," Jess told him with a gentle chuckle. She snuggled against his warm chest and gave a satisfied hum as he started to play with her hair. She thought it would probably end up being a little more than five minutes...


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Nick and Jess laid together for quite some time, tangled up in each other. They chatted amiably, giggling and hugging comfortably until they were interrupted by Nick's phone ringing. He scrunched up his face in irritation and reached over to his long discarded jeans. He fumbled at the pocket and pulled it out.

Jess didn't know who it was, but the look on Nick's face told her that it wasn't something that had pleased him. Whoever the caller was rung off, waited a moment and tried again. Nick just sat with the phone in his hand, staring at the screen, shaking his head.

"Who is it?" Jess asked with concern in her voice, following the third time it rang off.

"Caroline," Nick said, so quietly that Jess wasn't entirely sure that she had heard it.

"Want me to throw some clothes on so you can talk to her in private?"

"Would that be ok, Jess?" He finally looked over at her with the saddest eyes she had seen. "It's not that I don't want you to hear what I'm going to say, nothing like that. It's just..."

"Nick, it's absolutely fine," Jess said firmly, squeezing his hand. "I totally understand."

Jess grabbed her clothes and put them on hastily, shooting Nick a supportive smile as she left the room. She closed the door to his room after her and went into the kitchen to make them both some tea. She had a feeling that Nick would need it after speaking to Caroline.

"Jess!" Schmidt said, sounding surprised. "Where's Nick?"

"Oh, hey Schmidt," Jess said with a worried smile. "He's in his bedroom. Caroline called him, so I'm giving him time to speak to her."

"Ugh!" Schmidt cried dramatically. "She'll say something to mess him up. She's a horrible woman."

"He's only told me a bit of the deal there," Jess said slowly. "What don't I know?"

Schmidt shook his head and walked over to the couch. He flopped down and gave a loud sigh. Jess followed and sat gently down next to him, steeling herself for whatever he was about to say.

"She was fine to start with," Schmidt said quietly, looking around as if he might be overheard. "But she had this hold over him. She'd force him to do what she wanted him to do and would pitch a fit to get her way. He loved her and she used that to manipulate him. Gradually he lost pretty much everything that made him Nick when she was around. She always told him he was wrong and punished him severely for anything that she felt wasn't right."

Jess listened quietly. She hadn't yet heard the worst, she thought to herself and waited for Schmidt to continue.

"Before they met, he was a happy-go-lucky kinda guy. He had a few daddy issues and was terrible with women, but that was part of what made him such a down to earth person. He started finding himself at college, with help from Winston and me, and he was just starting to get some confidence."

Jess smiled, imagining a younger Nick.

"That witch claimed him in our final year. She pushed him and pulled him in every direction, making him do everything for her. He followed her like a lovesick puppy. He had a hard time doing everything for her as well as his studying and eventually it got too much for him. He dropped out of law school and that was when she dealt the final blow. She kept telling him how much of a failure he was. He believed it."

"She sounds terrible!" Jess frowned sadly and shot worried glances towards Nick's bedroom door.

Schmidt carried on, telling Jess story after terrible story, giving her a real picture of exactly why Caroline had completely broken Nick. Jess couldn't wipe the horrified look off her face.

"That's just the stuff I know about," Schmidt said darkly. "Nick stopped telling us about it years ago. It's like he just surrendered because he thought that was how a relationship had to be for him."

"No wonder he's a bit messed up," Jess said, her heart breaking a little for him.

"He usually has about a month of being a complete train wreck after she does one of her 'oh I need you' calls to make sure he's still wiggling on her hook. With you around, I'm not so sure." Schmidt fixed her with an examining gaze.

"I'm not sure he's still on her hook," Jess said quietly. "What will that do?"

"Never happened before, Jess," Schmidt said seriously. "We're in uncharted waters, here."

Both Schmidt and Jess's heads snapped up as Nick walked out of his room. His face was pale and drawn, as though he had seen a ghost. He still held his phone in his hand, but his fingers were loose around it, as if he'd forgotten it was there.

"Nick," Jess began.

"It's fine," Nick said tightly. "She just wants to see me. She says it's important. It never is."

"What did you say?" Jess asked in a tiny voice.

"I told her I'd go meet her in half an hour." Nick's jaw was set firmly. "I want to tell that evil, terrible woman to her face that she ruined years of my life and that I don't ever want to hear from her again."

Jess sat in stunned silence. Her mouth hung open a little.

"Nick, my friend," Schmidt said, rising from the couch to clap his hand on his friend's back. "That is the most sensible thing I've ever heard you say. Bravo!"

"If I hadn't met Jess, I would never have realized that, Schmidt," Nick said, calmly. "You should congratulate her. I just can't believe she's got the gall to call me after all this time. It makes me so damn mad!"

Jess was processing what had happened. A smile crept across her face.

"Want me and Schmidt to come along?" she asked brightly. "We can lurk out of sight. We've got your back!"

Schmidt grinned at Jess. "Damn right. We got your back, son!"

"That'd actually be really great," Nick said, with a small smile. "Caroline is like the confidence zapper, so knowing you're both there rooting for me will help."

The three of them went and got ready to go out. Jess decided to put on one of her fancier, sexier dresses - a red one that showed her curves and cleavage off nicely.

"Looking good there, Jess," Nick told her appreciatively.

"It never hurts when meeting an ex for your current girlfriend to look hot," Jess said with a wink.

Nick laughed. He marveled at how this woman was so sweet, so incredibly hot and so very into him. Caroline didn't stand a chance.

"Hopefully you won't have to meet her," he said, scratching his stubble. "But if you do, that will most certainly work. If not, we're going out afterwards as a dress like that is too good to waste."

The trio left the loft and headed out to Nick's bar, where Caroline was due to meet them. Schmidt and Jess continued to bolster Nick's confidence as they walked along as they could see him wavering a tiny bit. When they arrived, Nick waved to Big Bob behind the bar and gave some sort of barman sign language to tell him to bring a beer over to him. Bob nodded.

Schmidt and Jess chose some seats at the bar, where they could see Nick and Caroline but not be obvious about it. They each ordered a drink and sipped at them.

Jess gave Caroline a good look up and down as she stood up from the booth to greet Nick. She kissed him on the cheek and Jess tried to push down her rising bubble of jealousy and anger. She was taller than Jess, with a round face and bottle blonde hair that was the color of wet straw. Jess could see from the set of her shoulders that she wanted something from Nick.

"We call that the tractor beam," Schmidt whispered in Jess's ear. "She locks it on to him and pulls him into her claws."

Jess growled a little, surprising herself. She saw Schmidt smiling and looked questioningly at him.

"You've really got it bad for him, huh?" Schmidt shot her a playful smile.

"I know it's early on, but I'm pretty sure I'm falling for him," Jess said softly. "I've not told him yet, so please don't give me away."

"My lips are sealed," Schmidt told her in a plaintive voice that sounded like how Nick described the old Schmidt. "You're the best thing that has happened to him and you actually make him happy. It's pretty great to see, actually."

"Thanks, Schmidt," Jess said, managing a little smile.

"Oh, man," Schmidt said gleefully. "I've never seen him deflect the tractor beam before. He's made, like, a hand shield."

Jess looked over to see Nick shaking his head and putting his hands up in front of himself as if warding her away. His face was set and determined. Caroline was trying to hide her annoyance, but pure anger was flashing across her face. Clearly, this was a woman used to getting her own way.

After several minutes of seemingly tense discussions, Jess could see Nick looking down at the table, concentrating fiercely on a bead of condensation on his glass of beer. Caroline was talking at him, rather than to him. Nick shook his head again, looking to be on the brink of defeat.

Something inside Jess snapped. She couldn't say how she got from her seat to the booth, but suddenly found herself there.

"You must be Caroline," Jess practically hissed at the other woman.

"You must be the new woman," Caroline said snidely, looking Jess up and down.

"Jess," Nick started softly, looking up at her. "It's ok, I got this."

"You got this?" Caroline said, one notch below a shriek "You GOT this?" She gave a derisive snort of laughter.

"Caroline, I told you before and I'll tell you again," he said in a soft, calm voice. "I'm with Jess now and I'm not interested in what you have to say."

"You'll come running back, Nick, you always do," Caroline retorted angrily. "Once you've finished with this stick figure, you'll want some real woman."

Nick's mouth hung open dumbly. He had never irritated Caroline to the point of her being possessive over him or to the point that she would insult someone she'd never met before.

"I'm more of a real woman than you'll ever be," Jess said hotly. "You're just a manipulator who wants to hold Nick in your thrall as your backup plan and he is much, much better than that."

Caroline blinked a few times. Nick could see that Jess's words had hit home with her.

"You two will never last," Caroline spat. Looking at Nick, she finished with what she thought would be the death blow. "She's too good for you, Nick. You know it and I know it. You need me because she'll work it out one day and leave you."

Nick looked as though he could burst into tears. Caroline knew exactly what to say to sneak in through chinks in his defences.

"What you've forgotten, Caroline," Jess said in a dangerously low voice, "is that Nick is too good for _you_. You clearly have an over inflated opinion of yourself. You should count yourself lucky that he stayed with you as long as he did."

Caroline stood up. "I don't have to stay here and listen to these insults. I'm leaving."

"Get lost, Caroline," Nick piped up quietly, standing up. "Don't call me again."

Caroline left the bar, vibrating with rage. As the door banged shut after her, Nick sighed a sigh of pure relief.

"I don't know what came over me," Jess said sheepishly. "I'm sorry, Nick, I didn't mean to undermine you. I just saw how bad she was making you feel and it made me so mad. I'm never like that... I'm the nice person. I'm the girl who makes her ex feel better when he cheats on her..." The words tumbled out in a rushed jumble.

"Maybe this is new Jess," Nick said with a smile. "Maybe I'm rubbing off on you a little. Besides, I don't think you undermined me. You just came and underscored my point to her that you're better for me than she is."

Schmidt dashed over, full of smiles.

"Nicholas, marry this woman," he said commandingly. "And join me in a rousing chorus of 'ding dong the witch is dead'."

Nick and Jess laughed together, relieved that the awkwardness was over. Schmidt got straight on the phone to Coach and Winston and gave them the fast version of what had just happened. They rushed to the bar to celebrate Nick moving on to the next phase in his life.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

It was exactly three days after the Caroline-related celebration that Nick disappeared. He hadn't just gone out for longer than expected; he was completely and totally off the grid. As they hadn't been together long, Jess didn't totally expect him to get in touch with her but she was worried.

They had been talking on the phone quite normally the night before and Nick had said to her that he'd talk to her the following day before he went to work. She hadn't realized that she waited for his calls when she knew they were coming until the day that it didn't come.

Jess told herself that something unexpected had come up, or he'd gotten distracted by something and forgotten to call. She told herself that he was fine. Her heart told her otherwise and it dropped to the pit of her stomach and made a tangled ball of worry.

She heard nothing the following day. She heard nothing the day after and they had casual date plans for a Friday night that he wasn't working. Jess sent him a text message to check that they were still on and didn't hear back all day. She didn't quite know what to do.

After work, she decided to head to his apartment. She didn't have numbers for any of his roommates, so she thought maybe they wanted to get in touch with her to tell her what had happened but couldn't.

Jess knocked on the door and waited for what seemed like the longest moment of her life. Her emotions churned, dark and confused, within her.

"Jess, hey!" Winston said, looking awkward. "Uh, Nick's not here."

"Hey Winston," Jess said, failing dismally to hide the wobble in her voice. "I'm sorry to drop in on you like this. I just wanted to, uh, make sure that Nick's ok..."

Winston looked awkward. It made Jess's stomach drop sickeningly.

"I can't believe he didn't call you, Jess," Winston said quietly.

Jess's eyes burned with hot tears. She didn't know what Winston was telling her, but she was absolutely sure that it wasn't a good thing. She felt her chest tighten. She couldn't form any words, but finally managed to drag her eyes up to Winston's face.

"Oh, shit, Jess, no, sorry, shit," Winston said in a panicked hurry. "I'm an idiot. God, come in."

Jess was so confused. Her eyes searched Winston's face for clues. Her chest hadn't released its vice-like grip even one iota. He grabbed her by the elbow and led her gently to the couch. She sat down and tears silently fell down her face.

"Jess, no," Winston said pleadingly. "His Mom is sick and his Dad isn't around at the moment, so he had to go to Chicago. I meant the part about not believing that he didn't call you. That's a bonehead move, Jess. I'm sorry. We, men, we're terrible at this stuff."

She took a moment to digest what Winston had told her. On the one hand, Nick was ok, which was great. On the other hand, he hadn't told her and that ground at her.

"O-ok," Jess muttered. "J-just ask him when you speak to him to call me if he gets time."

Blinded by tears, Jess leaped to her feet and rushed out of the apartment. Winston jumped up and dashed after her.

"Jess," Winston called, seeing that she was making a bid for freedom down the fire escape. "He hasn't called us either, he just left a post it!"

She faintly heard Winston as she ran down the stairs. She left the apartment block and sat in her car for a few minutes to calm herself down enough to be able to drive safely.

Winston shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. Nick had really dropped a clanger this time. At this point in their relationship, Winston knew that girlfriends don't put up with too much. Jess was a bit different as the pair of them already acted as though they had been together for far longer than they had. Which was why Winston was astounded that Nick hadn't called her.

He dialed Nick's number quickly and got directed straight to voicemail.

"Nick, it's Winston. Look, man, I know your Mom's sick and you have a lot to deal with. I don't get involved in your relationships either. But, Jess has just left here in tears because you didn't call her. You really hurt her feelings, man. She's the best thing that's happened to you and you're this close to blowing it. Make this right."

He shook his head and threw the phone onto the couch in frustration.

Jess's tears had mostly dried and she was left feeling a bit sad and really rather angry. She dialed Nick's number and got directed straight to voicemail.

"Nick, it's Jess. I hope you are alright and your Mom is ok. I just need you to call me. We were supposed to be going out today and tomorrow and I'm a bit disappointed that you couldn't even send me a text. Anyway, please give me a call. I miss you."

Jess shook her head. She couldn't quite bring herself to go back to CeCe's place. She felt embarrassed, more than anything, that she had thrown herself into her relationship with Nick and then it had just... disappeared. She didn't want to talk to CeCe about it because her friend would want to know much more than Jess had answers for or could tolerate at this point in time.

She dropped her car off near CeCe's place and headed to the nearest bar that she could find. It was an Irish pub called 'Ryan's Bar' which had all kinds of barrels, glasses and harps all over the walls. It was a little bit scruffy and definitely smelled of spilled beer.

She walked up to the bar and flopped down heavily on a worn but surprisingly comfortable bar stool. She ordered a drink from the barmaid, who had an endearingly thick Irish accent, and sipped at it.

The bar wasn't especially busy, so the barmaid kept coming back to her.

"I'm Ennis," she said, grinning.

"Jess. Pleased to meet you."

"You look awful sad there, young lady. Do you perhaps want to tell me your woes? I can see from your face it's man troubles. Believe me, I know about them. I'm on my fourth husband!"

Jess laughed and gave a wan smile. She started to tell this complete stranger the story of her and Nick. The woman nodded, listening intently. When Jess got to the events of that week, the Irish woman began to frown and slowly shake her head.

"That's not right there, Jess," Ennis told her sagely. "He can't just go leavin' ya like that."

"I know, right?" Jess said, a little louder than she had expected.

She continued for quite some time, back and forth with the chirpy woman. Somehow, being able to talk to someone completely impartial who wouldn't judge her made her feel a little better.

Meanwhile, in Chicago, Nick was bringing his Mom home from the hospital. She had taken a tumble down the stairs in their house and had been rushed into hospital with a suspected broken leg. Nick had hopped on the first flight out as his Dad was on one of his jaunts away from home and his brother just plain couldn't cope.

He'd spent pretty much every moment at his Mom's bedside or running errands. He'd probably managed to snatch about 6 or so hours sleep in the three days that he had been in Chicago, so he felt about ready to drop.

He got his Mom settled on the couch at home. She didn't have a broken leg, but she had torn the connective tissue around her hip joint. It was extremely painful and she wouldn't be able to walk for a while, but she was going to be ok. He elevated her leg and covered her with a blanket before heading upstairs to his old bedroom to get some sleep.

Nick threw himself down on the bed, which creaked rather dangerously under him. He pulled open his bag and grabbed his charger for his phone. His phone had run out of power shortly after he had arrived and there hadn't been time to charge it in the ensuing chaos. He plugged it in and went to the bathroom to wash up before bed.

When he got back, he saw that he had a bunch of texts and voicemails. He decided to listen to the voicemails first. _Two new messages..._

"Nick, it's Winston..." Nick's face dropped. His heart sank into his feet.

He gulped and deleted the voicemail, knowing who the second one would be from.

"Nick, it's Jess..." Nick could hear in her voice that she was upset.

"Shit," he hissed to himself. "Shit, shit, shit. I'm such a god damn asshole."

He couldn't believe that he hadn't gotten in touch with her. He had been so involved in what he'd been doing and how much was going on that he hadn't even thought to call.

"You self-involved dick," he berated himself, running his hands through his hair roughly.

He looked at the time and worked out that it was pretty late for Jess. He tossed up calling her, while he looked through the texts. There were a few from Winston and Schmidt sending best wishes to his family and other usual guy stuff. There were lots from Jess, containing sweet little well wishes for him despite him dropping off the face of the planet. As the week went on, they got sadder and more anxious. His heart pounded and his palms sweated. He didn't know what to do.

He swallowed against the lump in his throat and dialed Jess. He hoped that his call would make her less mad to compensate for how late it was.

It rang. He held his breath. His heart pounded.

It rang again. He scratched his neck nervously.

It rang again. Part of him started to hope that it would go to voicemail.

It rang aga-

"Nicholas Miller," Jess answered. "About time you called. You're late for our date."

"I'm so sorry Jess, my Mom fell down the stairs and it's just been-"

"I can't hear you, I'm in a bar with my new friend Ennis."

Nick's heart stopped. She'd gone out to a bar. She was now rubbing a new 'friend' in his face. He had blown it.

"Ennis?" He knew his voice sounded strange.

"It's really loud, let me go outside," Jess said. She sounded a little bit tipsy as she shuffled through a bar. It sounded like there was jaunty music but not masses of people.

"Ok," Jess said, the noise a little quieter in the background. "How's your Mom?"

"She's ok. Her leg's not broken, but she's really hurt herself. I'll be here a few more days." Nick took a deep breath. "I'm so sorry Jess, it's been crazy here. I've not had a charge on my phone since I got here. I know I should have let you know. God, I'm such an ass."

"Yeah," Jess said, "I'm pretty annoyed. Ennis understands how I feel."

Nick felt a prickle of jealousy that he didn't deserve to have. "Will you let me make it up to you, Jess?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure I should be making decisions though. My judgement is impaired." She gave a small giggle. He hoped that was a good thing and not just the drinks talking.

"How are you, Jess? I'm sorry I upset you earlier."

"I'm ok. Less upset than I was. Ennis saw to that!" Jess laughed at a joke that Nick clearly didn't understand.

"So who's Ennis?"

"The owner of this cool Irish pub. We've talked it over for quite a while and decided that we might forgive you."

Nick's heart sank even further as he heard someone calling Jess back inside for last orders.

"Nick, I've got to go," Jess said.

"I know, Jess," Nick said sadly. "Would you call me in the morning please? I don't care what time, I want to talk to ya if you'll let me."

"Sure, Nick," Jess replied, a little distantly. He could hear people talking to her. "I'll call you when I wake up."

The line went dead. Nick sat, staring at his phone. Tears splashed down on to his hands. The last week caught up with him in one hit - all the emotions that had churned within him around what had happened with Caroline spilled out, plus the sadness at what he'd just done to Jess, as well as everything with his Mom and with his Dad being away when they needed him the most. He felt angry at himself and at everyone else and flopped back on to the bed.

He rolled over and buried his face in his pillow and gave a frustrated, but muffled roar before cursing to himself, laying on his back and staring moodily at the ceiling.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Jess was usually a morning person. To be fair, though, Jess usually didn't have a monster hangover. Lucky for her, models tended to party hard and sleep late, so she could roll over, turn her pillow over to get the cool side on her face, then go back to sleep.

She woke up a couple of times and drank masses of water, before heading to the bathroom to pee and making a wobbly course back to the couch to carry on sleeping. She hadn't been that drunk since college and it seemed that the years hadn't been kind to her, hangover-wise. It felt like her brain was two sizes to big for her skull and the pounding in her head appeared to be her heartbeat taking revenge on her.

By mid-afternoon, CeCe had emerged from her bedroom also looking a bit the worse for wear.

"Hey sweetie, I thought you had a date last night," CeCe said with a yawn. "You got in after I did! Did you two have a fight?"

"No," Jess croaked. "Long story, but Nick had to go look after his Mom in Chicago and I went and got drunk. Very drunk. Too drunk." She groaned and rubbed her head.

CeCe raised an eyebrow. "There must be more to it than that, Jess," she said firmly.

"There is Cees, but my head's far too fragile to go through it all," she said. The huge, dark rings around her eyes made CeCe decide that she would leave it for now.

"Fine," she breathed. "I'll go get us coffee."

Jess sat back in the folds of her bedding and shook her fuzzy head. She knew Nick had called, but couldn't quite recall what he had said. She knew she'd given him a hard time, but the details weren't forthcoming.

After a moment, she remembered Nick asking her to call him when she woke up. She searched around for her phone and flicked through her call logs and text messages, making sure there wasn't anything she couldn't remember.

Following her phone call with Nick, her new friends at the bar had introduced her to some new shots and it had all got a bit messy after that! Thankfully, she hadn't called him again or done anything embarrassing as far as she could tell. She wiped the sleep out of her eyes and dialed Nick's number, getting the voicemail again.

"Hi Nick, hope you're ok. You wanted me to call, so here I am, calling. Uh, I'm not quite sure what else to say. I can't really remember what we talked about last night. I hope we're ok... I'm still a little mad, but call me when you can."

She hung up the phone, feeling a bit hollow. She didn't like not being able to remember what had happened. She didn't like feeling mad. She had started to get used to how nicely Nick treated her, which was probably why the whole thing had been so disappointing.

"Ugh," she murmured to herself. "My head hurts too much for all this self-analysis."

CeCe brought out a large, red and white spotty cup, full of steaming coffee that smelled absolutely wonderful. She handed it to Jess, who took a deep lungful of fragrant steamy air.

There was a pounding knock at the door.

"JESS!" came Nick's voice from outside. "JESS!"

Jess jumped up and tried to pull her pajamas straight. As she went to the door, she smoothed her hair to try to make it a little less insane, not really succeeding fully, and CeCe made her excuses to go to her room and give them a little privacy.

As Jess pulled open the door, she looked up at Nick. He looked crumpled and very tired indeed, black circles around his puffy eyes. He looked absolutely terrible!

"Jeez, Nick," Jess said, forgetting for a moment that she was mad at him. "Are you ok?"

"Are you ok?" he asked quickly, looking at her with worry lines imprinted on his forehead.

"Hungover as hell," she admitted. "But otherwise fine. Come in."

They walked over to the couch and sat down a little awkwardly.

"Seriously, Nick, are you ok? You look awful."

"I'm fine, Jess," Nick said dismissively. "I just need to know you and I are ok. I'm sorry about everything. I just... I don't know... I'm terrible." He looked so sad.

"We're ok, Nick," Jess said quietly. "I'm mad, I'll get over it. What did you do? I thought you were in Chicago."

"I was in Chicago," he said, eyes running over her face, trying to make sure she was actually ok. "After we spoke last night, I booked myself on the first flight home. I grabbed a little sleep and hopped on the early plane. I came right over here to find you and apologize again."

"You look exhausted, Nick," Jess's voice was full of worry. "We didn't speak that long ago. You can't have had much sleep."

"I didn't, but you're too important to let drift away," he said plaintively. "I need to make this right, damnit."

"You make it sound like you killed my puppy or something," Jess replied. "You didn't call for a few days and you missed a date. It's annoying and I was mad about it, but you didn't need to fly here in a panic."

Nick blinked a few times. He didn't quite know what to say.

"I heard you having fun with that Ennis guy last night and I didn't want to lose you," he said softly. "I was so worried that I'd blown it and someone new had swept you off your feet."

"I'm not easily swept, Nick," Jess said with a tiny smile.

"I-I just didn't know what to do. Whenever Caroline was mad, she broke up with me and went out with someone else to punish me. Not that she cared enough to want me to call most of the time." The words were spilling out of Nick in a tired jumble.

"I know you're not Caroline," he continued, "but you're this amazing person who everyone instantly loves and when you told me about the guy you spent the night talking about your problems to, I thought you'd break up with me and go out with him."

"This is really hard for a hung over person to deal with," Jess said, furrowing her brow but giving him a little smile to try to make him feel better. "I'm not running off with anyone. I like you, a lot, and that's why I care enough to be mad at you. You should be worried if I'm not mad!"  
A little smile began to creep across Nick's tired features.

"Also," Jess said, a bigger smile playing about the corner of her lips, "Ennis is a woman, not a man. She's the barmaid and owner."

"A woman?" Nick asked, absolutely gobsmacked.

"A straight woman," Jess confirmed. "We talked about her first three husbands and she told me how she met husband number four."

Nick started to laugh. He felt such a huge wave of relief that he put his hand to his chest, feeling the tension start to leave him a tiny bit.

"I'm going to make it up to you, Jess," Nick croaked. "I'm so sorry, it was a complete idiot move."

"Is your Mom ok?" Jess asked, a little worried that he'd left her in such a rush.

"Believe me, if my Dad doesn't get home by this afternoon, he knows he's getting a visit from his eldest son. We had quite the conversation this morning."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, he shouldn't have left Mom on her own to start with," he said, with barely suppressed anger. "I'm not saying it's all his fault, but she wouldn't have fallen down the stairs if he hadn't left his spare suitcase hanging around. I wouldn't have had to go look after her if he'd been there and if I'd gone to visit, he would have done all her errands so I would have had a minute to myself to charge my phone and call my girlfriend."

"Well, when you put it like that..." she said with a smile.

"I take full responsibility for not calling ya, though, Jess," he said quickly. "It's just Dad didn't help matters."

"You're full of surprises, Miller," Jess said with a smile. "You went to a lot of trouble to make sure that I knew you were sorry and you even said you're wrong. I might have to make you hand in your tough guy card."

Nick gave a small chuckle of pure relief. "Take all my cards, Jess, I don't care. I just want to make it up to ya."

"Ok, ok, I surrender," Jess said with a wry smile. "If only to make you go get some sleep before you keel over!"

Nick let out a breath he didn't even know he had been holding. He felt such relief flooding his whole body. He leaped across the couch and hugged Jess. She hugged him back tightly and felt her brow crease as she felt his shoulders shake.

"Are you laughing, Nicholas?" she asked, pulling back to look at his face.

He just shook his head silently, tears running down his cheeks. Jess's eyebrows hitched up. She wasn't expecting to see that.

"Oh, no, please don't cry, Nick," Jess said hurriedly. She could feel tears prickling her eyes in response to his.

Nick roughly pushed his tears away and took a couple of shaky breaths. He shook his head a couple more times to try to shake the tiredness and worry out. After a few moments, he managed to look Jess in the eyes and give her a watery smile.

"Sorry, Jess," he said with an unsteady voice. "I'm a mess. I just... I'm so tired and it's been a crazy few days... I'm so relieved we're ok... I can't believe I cried in front of you. Oh my god!"

"I think you need some sleep, sweetheart," Jess said gently. "Let me get you home so you can get some rest. Did you bring your car?"

"Yeah, it's downstairs," he told her quietly. "Thank you for being so damn nice about this, Jess."

"Let me grab a quick shower and get dressed," Jess said softly. "I won't be long. I just need to clear the cobwebs out of my head. I have no idea what I was drinking last night. It's knocked me for six!"

Nick stroked her cheek fondly before she went into the bathroom. He wiped his face with his sleeve and got up quietly. He left he apartment and headed to the closest store, a few buildings away. He bought a few carefully selected items and headed back upstairs, hoping that he was there before Jess finished her shower.

CeCe let him back in with a surprised smile as he handed over a huge cup of iced coffee with a massive dollop of whipped cream.

Jess walked back in a few minutes later. She had thrown on one of her more comfortable sundresses and her hair was still wet, hanging in damp curls around her shoulders. She smiled at Nick, seeing that he looked a little brighter.

"The first thing I want to do to make it up to you," Nick said slowly, "is to introduce you to my sure fire hang over cure."

Jess laughed and smiled at him. "Just what I need please, Doctor Nick!"

"It's high risk, but high reward. You need to drink this can of Red Bull, followed swiftly by this ice cream. The high risk part is that there is a chance you'll throw up, but the high reward is that if you throw up, you feel better and if you keep it down you feel even better. I give it the Nick Miller guarantee."

Jess eyed him suspiciously and went to grab the ice cream.

"You have to have the Red Bull first, Jess," Nick said quickly, moving his hand to block the ice cream. "If you have it after the ice cream, it will make it curdle. That is not a good move!"

Still giving Nick a shifty look, Jess took the can of energy drink and chugged it down swiftly. She could feel the caffeine and sugar start to kick in almost straight away.

Nick grabbed a spoon while Jess drank and handed it over to her. She dug into the ice cream and ate several spoonfuls.

"You get a great sugar rush," Nick told her, "and the ice cream settles your stomach. It's a guaranteed cure!"

"I do feel better already," Jess enthused. "Let me get you home so you can get some rest, then we can go out together tonight. Sound ok?"

"Sounds incredible," Nick said, grinning tiredly.


End file.
